


let this friendship never end

by WattStalf



Series: Poll Fics [57]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, F/M, Gloria is fifteen and Leon is twenty, Loss of Virginity, Slow Burn, SwSh Retelling, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex, no idea when the smut starts, smut starts in chapter 15/16
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:08:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 22
Words: 43,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22363861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WattStalf/pseuds/WattStalf
Summary: Gloria has known Leon ever since she was a child, before he went on his journey and before he became the undefeated champion. She's had an impossible crush on him since then too, but that is something she prefers to keep to herself. However, now she and his younger brother- her best friend and rival, Hop- are about to start their own journeys, bringing her close to Leon once again.Semi-permanent hiatus
Relationships: Dande | Leon/Yuuri | Gloria
Series: Poll Fics [57]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1459168
Comments: 42
Kudos: 206





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my new Wednesday fic, updating weekly, check on twitter for info on updates if you're so inclined. This is basically a retelling of SwSh but with Gloria having known Hop and Leon since childhood, and eventually getting with Leon despite the age gap. There is going to be a lot of borrowed dialogue in future chapters, also future chapters should be longer than this one.  
> I do hope you all enjoy!

Though there is a short walk between their houses, Gloria and Hop are still neighbors, with Hop and his family living next door. Their families are close, and for as long as she can remember, Hop has been her best friend and the one she always played with. It certainly helped that there weren’t a lot of other children in their small town, but either way, she and Hop have always gotten along well.

Things were always fun with Hop, but they were even more fun when Leon would join them. Leon, a good five years older than his little brother, never made them feel like they were annoying when they wanted him to play with them, and would humor them for as long as they wanted. One of Gloria’s earliest memories is Leon telling them all about how, as soon as he was able to, he would be leaving town to become the Galar champion, and though she barely understood what that meant at the time, he explained everything, captivating her and Hop with stories of things that had not yet happened to him, but that he was sure  _ would _ happen, as soon as he had the chance.

Back then, she spent as much time at their house as possible, always with Hop and the two of them always following Leon around. Sometimes, Sonia would come from their neighboring town, always cooing over how adorable Hop and Gloria were. She was Leon’s age, and he had already decided that she was starting her Pokemon journey as soon as he was able to.

Gloria liked Sonia well enough, but whenever Leon would start saying things like that, she would wish more than anything that Sonia would head home already, and that she could be the one tagging along with Leon. Hop could come too, of course, and then maybe there would be room for Sonia too, but when it came to Leon insisting someone come with him, Gloria wanted it to be her.

Her reasoning for this came out one day when she was around four, coming home after playing with Hop for hours, pouting because his mother said that he had to clean his room and she needed to go home for a little while. She was so put out about having her game cut short that her own mother teased her a bit , saying she and Hop spent so much time together that it was almost like they were already married.

“But I wouldn’t marry Hop,” Gloria had protested. “I’m gonna marry Lee!”

“Oh, are you?” her mother asked, and then she laughed and Gloria insisted it wasn’t funny, because it was really,  _ really _ going to happen. She had never said anything like that before, not to her mother or to Hop, and certainly not to Leon, but from that point on, she had that goal in mind.

Of course, a year later, when Leon was ten and she and Hop were five, he and Sonia set off on their journey, and Gloria was nearly as inconsolable as Hop. The only thing that could comfort them was being told that any gym challenges he did would be recorded, and that they would be able to see him on TV.

At that point, both decided that they would be taking their journey as soon as they were able to, and even if it seemed like a long way away, they would be ready when the time came and catch up to Leon in no time at all. In the meantime, they stayed close friends, watching all of his matches together, and watching as he moved farther and farther forward, never losing, gaining a pretty big fan following as he went. Naturally, his biggest fans were still the two children in Postwick who never missed a match, and begged their parents for tickets to the championship.

Because of course Leon made it all the way to the end. Sonia didn’t even make it that far, and Gloria wondered about her when the semi-finals passed by with no sign of her, but then, whenever Leon was out on the pitch, she could think of nothing else. She was five years old when she watched her first crush become the champion of the Galar region, and knew for a fact that this was what being in love must feel like.

“What if there was two champions?” she asked Hop one day when they were seven, and Hop shook his head.

“If there was two, there wouldn’t be a champion! It has to be one!” he replied. “And as soon as I do the gym challenge, it’s gonna be me!”

He thought she wanted to share the title with him, because she didn’t want to have to battle her best friend. And it was true that having him as her rival would be difficult, but when she watched Leon claim the title, she got it into her head that she would catch up to him and that they would be champion together. Once they were married, of course, because she still loved him madly.

For a few more years, that is how things are, but as she gets older, she starts to understand a few things, with the most major point being that Leon is out of her league in more ways than one. Over the years, she’s barely seen him, as he becomes busier and visits home less and less, until it gets to the point that his family has to take the time to go to Wyndon to see him, and in that time, she has started to grow out of her crush.

Leon is the champion, and has consistently been so for years, never losing to anyone. While Hop has continued to insist he will be the one to take him down, never abandoning that dream, Gloria has been forced to realize how unrealistic hers is. For one thing, she’s too young for him, and he probably sees her like a little sister. She has no chance of being anything more than “Hop’s best friend” to him, and he wouldn’t go for some kid. Not only that but he  _ is _ the champion, making him much more than the older boy next door who used to play with her. He’s more like a distant celebrity now, and she knows well enough that her dream of being a champion alongside him is nothing more than a childish fantasy.

By the time Gloria is fifteen, she has completely gotten over her childhood crush on Leon. She still spends pretty much all of her time with Hop and his family, and they still watch all of his matches, and they still talk about their journey, one that they once thought they’d be taking as soon as they hit ten, but one that still hasn’t happened yet. You have to have endorsement for that, and Leon had lucked out while Sonia had family connections backing her. Hop and Gloria have nothing, other than Leon continually telling Hop that he’ll be ready when he’s ready.

Everything is the same as it always is, except for the fact that she’s no longer chasing Leon’s shadow because of some desire to be with him. She’s older and wiser now, and she knows better, understanding that it’s impossible, and that she only ever liked him to begin with because he was Hop’s cool older brother, and they had fun together sometimes. But now, she’s completely over that.

Except...


	2. Chapter 2

Except she really is not over him at all. It’s been ten years since he became the champion, and Gloria is fifteen and should know better by now, but her heart still skips a beat when she sees him on TV, and she checks out every interview he does, and saves more articles in her dresser drawers than she would ever want Hop to know about, even though she knows that he saves everything his brother does. It’s different for him, and she doesn’t want anyone to find out just how different their situations are.

Of course, it’s easy to keep these feelings to herself after years of practice, and even easier when she rarely sees Leon, but he’s coming to visit soon. It is all Hop has been able to talk about, and Gloria is excited, more so than she lets on. Around Hop, she is as excited as any neighbor-slash-childhood-friend should be, as excited as any big fan should be, and at home she rolls around on her bed and bites her lip to keep herself from screaming from her excitement.

All these years and she still has it this bad. It’s embarrassing, and she would do anything to get it out of her system, but after all this time, she doesn’t know if that’s possible. She has spent so much time pining for the unattainable champion and her old friend that the idea of not having a crush on Leon seems completely foreign to her. Maybe it would help if she had more of a pool to choose from, but there aren’t that many prospects in town, and none that are more appealing than the man she has spent two-thirds of her life idolizing and idealizing.

Whatever the case, Leon is coming to visit, and it’s all Hop can talk about and all Gloria can think about. The day of, she can hardly sit still, and the only thing she has that can properly pass the time is Leon’s latest exhibition match, which was, unfortunately, not aired live, so she couldn’t watch it while it was happening. Just like always, her heart jumps in her throat when the chairman of the league announces him, and she bites her lip as he makes his grand entrance.

His battle is just getting underway when the front door flies open, with Hop running in and calling out his greeting to her. “Hello, hello! Oh! Is that your flash new phone, Gloria?” He comes in behind her, and she feels oddly self-conscious when he looks over her shoulder, though he would never be surprised to find her watching Leon. “Were you watching Lee’s exhibition match on that?”

“Well, yeah,” she replies. He knows that she’s been waiting to get a new phone for a while, and has been so excited about being able to watch things on it that she has started preferring that.

“But you know the only way to properly cheer on Lee would be with his famous Charizard pose!” he protests, before immediately imitating said pose. Gloria laughs, shaking her head, as her mother enters the room.

“Hop! Didn’t expect to see you here today. Isn’t this the big day?” she asks.

“Yeah, but that’s exactly why I had to run over and get Gloria!” he replies. “Of course she wants to see Lee right when he gets here too, never mind watching his match! Plus, I’ve got it recording at home anyway.”

Turning back to her, he grins and says, “Come on, Gloria, let’s go! He should be here any minute! I wonder what he brought us this time? You know Lee always brings presents!” Without waiting for her, he heads for the door.

“Hold on, I need to get my sweater!” she calls after him.

“Then just meet me at mine when you’re ready!” Hop replies, already racing out the door. The two of them are so close that he comes and goes as he pleases when he knows that it’s acceptable to come over, and so Gloria is just as welcome at his house. She quickly runs to her room to grab her sweater and hat, not wanting Hop to get too far ahead of her, but when she makes it out the door, she finds that Hop has been delayed a bit.

“Hey! You silly Wooloo! I see what you’re up to! Don’t go using tackle on the fencing!” he says, and, sure enough, there is a Wooloo rolling hard against the fence near Gloria’s house, a fence that blocks Postwick off from an area that few venture into. Hop continues to scold the Wooloo, saying, “Now, you listen! No going past that fence! No! Everyone knows there are scary Pokemon living in the Slumbering Weald!”

The Wooloo does not seem to care what Hop says either way, but he seems satisfied with himself, turning back to Gloria. “Now that that’s taken care of...how about it, Gloria? Let’s race! I bet I can make it to my house first!”

Hop takes off so quickly that Gloria can hardly process what he’s saying before he’s crossing the bridge to his house, leaving her to follow after him. He’s always wanting to race, always rushing off and always impulsive, but she doesn’t mind today. In her excitement, she actually likes having an excuse to run to his house, where they both come bursting through the door.

“Mum!” he cries. “Is he here?!”

“There you are, Hop! Oh, and you’ve brought along Gloria.”

“Yeah, yeah, but where’s Lee?” he asks, his impatience showing. “Have you got him crammed in a cupboard?”

Before she answers, even before he asks, Gloria can tell that Leon isn’t here yet. He has that sort of presence where you wouldn’t be able to miss him, even with all of Hop’s carrying on. His mother confirms it, saying, “He’s still not here! For the hundredth time, Hop, you must learn some patience! By now, I’d say he’s probably only just arrived at the station.”

Already, Hop has turned to head back for the door. “Then that’s where I’m going! You know Lee is hopeless with directions. I’ll make sure he doesn’t get lost along the way!”

Laughing, Gloria follows him, not sure which is more amusing to her; the idea that Leon could get lost trying to get to his own house, or the fact that she could definitely see that happening, because Leon has been known to get lost just coming to pick Hop up from her house. Even his mother agrees, saying, “That’s probably for the best.”

“Come on, Gloria, we can greet him together!”

The station is in the next town over, where Sonia is from, and on the way there, they make sure to avoid any particularly tall grass so as to avoid wild Pokemon. Hop could battle if he needed to, because he has his own Wooloo, something that Leon helped him catch during a visit a year or so back- conveniently, visiting when Gloria was out of town, so she couldn’t see him. But because Gloria has no Pokemon of her own yet, they play it safe. Hop has offered to go out and catch her one, but she always said she wasn’t sure if she was ready yet.

Hop doesn’t run quite as fast as he did while racing her to his house, but he still charges ahead rather quickly, with Gloria following close behind, until the town and the station are in sight. In front of the station is a thick crowd of people, and she knows that that must mean Leon has arrived. She can’t stop her heart from racing as they approach, knowing for absolute certainty now that she still isn’t over him yet.

Though she can barely see him in the thick of the crowd, she can see enough to know that he’s showing off for everyone, while they all cheer him on. He has fans all over the region, but his biggest fans come from Wedgehurst and Postwick, the ones who have known him since he was just a kid, starting off on his journey. Gloria and Hop quickly join the crowd, listening as Leon banters back and forth with people, until Hop finally grows impatient, jumping to get his attention.

“Lee!”

Leon notices him immediately. “Hop! So, my number one fan in all the world has come out of his way to pick me up!” As he pushes through the crowd, Gloria realizes that she’s been holding her breath. “And you brought my other number one fan, huh? Nice to see you both!”

Once he’s standing in front of them, Gloria looks up at him. He’s finished growing by now, but she doesn’t think she’s got many inches left in her, and no matter how she has grown, Leon continues to tower over her, adding to his “larger than life” qualities. As if reading her mind, he looks down at the two of them before turning his attention to Hop and saying, “Look at you, Hop! I reckon you’ve grown...exactly an inch and a quarter since the last time I saw you!”

Hop, amazed and not realizing that their mother probably mentioned something like that before, replies, “Bingo! That’s the sort of sharp eye that’s kept you undefeated for so long, eh, Lee?”

“And what about you, Gloria? You’ve grown quite a bit yourself!” he says, beaming, and she hopes that her face isn’t actually as red as she thinks it must be. “I do appreciate both of you coming out here to greet me.”

At this point, Gloria thinks she should say something but Hop, as impatient as ever, speaks up again. “Come on, Lee, Gloria! Bet I can beat the both of you back home!” Just like always, he doesn’t wait for anyone else to agree to his race before he has already started off, sprinting back the way he and Gloria came, leaving her alone with Leon.

“That Hop…” he says, shaking his head. “Always wanting to be the best, isn’t he? Of course, it helps that he considers you his greatest rival. With you around, he’ll keep pushing himself to become something truly special!”

“I...well, I don’t know about that,” Gloria says rather dumbly, but Leon has already turned back to his adoring crowd.

“Well, everyone! I bid you farewell for today! But don’t you fret...I’ll always be around to make sure everyone in Galar can have a champion time!” Just like that, he sprints off like Hop did, leaving Gloria to try and catch up with him.

Even though she has hardly said anything to him and even though she feels like she’s only made herself look stupid in front of him, she feels giddy as she chases after him. Her legs aren’t as long as his and she hasn’t been able to keep up with him since childhood, but chasing after Leon gives her an entirely different thrill than racing with Hop.

Naturally, Hop beats them both home and has already had time to catch his breath by the time Gloria has caught up to the two of them, and even while Leon is panting, Hop is ready to keep things moving right along. Already, he pesters Leon without allowing his brother to go in and greet the rest of their family, but Gloria sees their mother looking through the window, smiling and shaking her head. She knows better than anyone how Hop is, and must have decided to let them be for a little while.

“Come on, Lee! You promised us a present!” he demands. “So, out with it! You brought me and Gloria Pokemon, didn’t you?”

And Leon, rather than scolding Hop for pestering him so, replies, “Right then! The greatest gift from the greatest champion!” He produces three Pokeballs, tossing them into the air as he says, “It’s showtime, everyone!”

Three Pokemon come forth, and Hop and Gloria watch eagerly, memorizing their features, trying to pick up on their personality traits, and doing anything and everything to get to know them. Gloria has passed up opportunities for Hop to help her catch a Pokemon because she wanted the time to be right; now that Leon is offering her one, she knows that this is exactly what she’s been waiting for.

After ordering them to line up, the three small Pokemon obey him, and he lists off their names one by one, explaining their qualities and strengths. There is the energetic Scorbunny and industrious Grookey, but the one that catches Gloria’s attention from the beginning and manages to hold onto it is Sobble, who fusses and looks up at her with big, teary eyes. She is immediately enchanted, and hopes that this is the one she gets to take.

“Go on, you pick first,” Hop says, his excitement contagious. He’s waited a long time for Gloria to get her first Pokemon, after all. “I’ve already got Wooloo, so you go on ahead.”

She does not need to give it a moment of thought, leaning down with her hands on her knees. “I think I’ll take Sobble,” she says, and the little guy brightens immediately. When she stands back up, she holds out here hands and he leaps right into them. For right now, she doesn’t even think about Leon standing behind her, watching her make her decision; she’s just delighted by her very first Pokemon.

“Nice one!” Hop says, stepping forward to study the remaining two. “I’ll go with Scorbunny! You’re mine! I’m aiming to be the next champion, so be ready! You and I’ll do some serious training!”

“I bet you will be, Hop. That’s why I brought along these Pokemon for you and Gloria,” says Leon, bringing her attention back to him. “So the two of you can battle and train and grow stronger together…to try and reach me!”

He decides to take Grookey, the only one remaining of the three, for himself, and then, their mother finally comes outside, telling them that it’s almost time to eat. Their families will be having dinner together, which means that Gloria will get to spend more time near Leon.

Right now, she isn’t sure which she is more excited for- the Sobble following her and watching with those big, adorable eyes, or Leon, who gives her another grin that nearly stops her heart before going to help with setting up for dinner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For a little while, this will update every other wednesday, but it will go back to weekly updates in March


	3. Chapter 3

Gloria doesn’t intend to stick close to Leon during their barbecue, but somehow, that is exactly what happens. Really, she’s minding her business when he comes over to talk to her, and then that is where she stays for the rest of the evening. It has been such a long time since they’ve had a chance to talk; honestly, she isn’t sure if they’ve ever had a proper conversation, considering she mostly only spent time with him as a little kid, and she doubts any of that counts.

Hop is buzzing all over the place, wanting to talk to everyone about everything he possibly can, particularly about his impending Pokemon journey, even though neither of them have been given the go-ahead to take such a journey yet. He doesn’t seem to care about that little detail, though, and is having the time of his life, leaving Leon to spend more time getting caught up with Gloria.

Which leaves her more than a little overwhelmed. As much as she can pretend to be able to keep it together in his presence, that doesn’t mean that, inside, she isn’t completely freaking out. Leon is only the man she’s adored for the majority of her life, someone she used to see daily, and someone who went on to become like a distant star, and now, here he is, back in her life and talking to her like he’s her neighbor or something.

Which, well, he kind of is? Even if he doesn’t live here anymore, and rarely ever comes back home. It makes sense for her to be so thrown off by it, but she does what she can to keep Leon from figuring out how much the whole thing freaks her out. To him, she’s still the same little Gloria who always tagged along after him with Hop. To him, nothing has changed between them, and she doubts he would understand the way her hands shake when she looks at him up close for too long.

“Sobble’s going to make a great partner for you, I think,” Leon says, and she reminds herself to stop gawking at him and actually listen to what he has to say. “I didn’t spend a  _ lot _ of time with the little guys, but I got to know them enough to make sure they were good enough for you and Hop. Any of them would have suited either of you, but I had some idea of who I thought you would go for.”

“So, you were planning on me taking Sobble?” she asks, a little curious. What would have happened if she had been interested in one of the other two, then?

“Sort of. Like I said, I think any of them would have been a good match, but I just got a feeling you would go for Sobble. Maybe because whenever he starts fussing, it reminds me of when we were kids,” he says. Secretly, she feels a little pleased that he uses the past tense for both of them, implying that he does not still think of her as a kid. It doesn’t mean much, she knows, but it’s something.

She has to put that thought out of her head, however, so that she can keep talking to him like a normal person, rather than getting overly excited over a throwaway remark.

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, well, you know how Hop went through that phase where he would throw tantrums all the time,” Leon says with a shrug. “You’d always try to calm him right down, even though mum said we should just ignore him until he stopped. You always seemed like a natural caretaker, even back then.”

To be honest, Gloria had never thought about it that way. Back then, she calmed down Hop because it felt like the right thing to do, even if everyone else told her to just let him cry, he would get over. Today, she chose Sobble because he was so cute, and she didn’t want him to start crying if she  _ didn’t _ choose him. But now, Leon himself is practically praising her for it, and even if she isn’t sure if he’s entirely right, she isn’t going to turn down a compliment from someone like him.

“And you probably thought Scorbunny would be good for Hop,” she says, “because he can never stay still.”

“Exactly,” Leon says, giving her one of the brightest smiles she has ever seen, the sort of smile that she thinks only Leon is capable of. “So, I can at least say I wasn’t too surprised with your choices. You’re both off to a great start.”

So this is meant to be some kind of start. As soon as he says it, she wonders if he meant to imply that, if he wants her to have figured it out by now. The only thing she and Hop would need to take on the gym challenge is an official endorsement, and Leon could offer them that, no sweat. He may not have admitted outright to planning it, but everything seems so well-timed that it’s hard to imagine any other outcome. And here he is, hinting at it to Gloria, while still pretending to have no intention while talking to Hop.

“So, you think I’m finally ready to leave Postwick?” she asks innocently, hoping that he might give more of answer.

However, Leon just laughs and says, “I didn’t say that, but...we’ll see, I guess. You sure have grown up from the little Gloria I used to know, at least. Now, I’m starting to realize-”

“Guys! You guys!” Hop yells, charging over to them. “My little Scorbunny just did the absolute funniest thing, while mum was trying to get to know him, he…”

Leon turns his attention to Hop’s story, and Gloria does her best to pay attention as well, but her mind is already far away. She knows, she absolutely  _ knows _ that he wasn’t going to say anything major to finish that sentence. But she wishes that Hop had come over just a few seconds later, so that he  _ could _ finish his sentence, rather than leaving her to wonder what he’s ‘starting to realize,’ because all she does for the rest of the night is fill in the blanks, usually with things far too unrealistic for Leon to have actually said.

Even when she’s back home, she still runs through scenarios, disgusted with herself by how many of them involve him professing his sudden and undying love for her.

~X~

The next morning, Gloria wakes up bright and early- not that that’s difficult, with how little sleep she got, thinking about Leon- so that she can go back over to his house immediately. There is still so much more to discuss, and Hop had told her the night before that she should come over first thing, because he really had a “good feeling” about it. She brings Sobble, who slept rather peacefully at her side after only minimal fussing, back into his Pokeball before she heads out.

Sure enough, she sees Leon and Hop outside once she gets to their house, with Scorbunny running around at Hop’s feet, and Hop going on about playing together the night before, and how he and Scorbunny are already very close. When he sees Gloria, he waves her over and says, “How are you hitting it off with your little Sobble?”

“Very well,” she replies. “He settled down pretty easily last night. I think he likes me.”

“See, I knew you two would make a great pair!” Leon says with a grin that, if it were anyone else, she would think it was far too early for. Well, that probably isn’t entirely true; she’s used to Hop being just as cheerful and energetic at early hours, but even so, it feels different when it’s Leon.

Then, he gets that look on his face that he does when he’s doing interviews on TV, when he’s giving some big, inspiring speech, and he proceeds to do exactly that. “Listen up, new trainers! Believe in yourself and your Pokemon! If you trust in one another and carry on battling side by side long enough, then someday you might even become worthy rivals for me, the unbeatable champion!”

He finishes this with a flourish, a big smile, and a look in Gloria’s direction that leaves her heart absolutely racing. She is not the only one to notice this, because Hop says, “What are you looking at her for, Lee? I’m the one who’ll be coming to challenge you! No offense, Gloria, but even if you are my greatest rival, there’s no way I’m losing to you!”

Leon shakes his head and says, “All this talk of rivalry, and you haven’t even had a proper battle yet. Why don’t you show me how you handle yourself, first?” With that, he turns to Gloria and says, “What do you say? Willing and ready to take on Hop in the first ever Pokemon battle of your life?”

“I’m game!” she replies, and Hop cheers, excited. Truthfully, she isn’t sure if she wants Leon watching her first battle, but she tries to ignore the nerves that come from that. He knows she’s a beginner trainer, and encouraging beginner trainers is something that he considers part of his job as champion.

There’s a practice mat that has been outside their home for as long as Leon has been a trainer, and Hop and Gloria take their places on opposite ends, preparing their Pokemon. Gloria is a little unsure, what with Hop having two and her only having one, but she doesn’t want to be the one to ask if that’s unfair for her first time. If she’s going to lose, she’s going to lose, and she decides to just give it her best shot.

“I’ve watched every match Lee’s ever had! I’ve read every book and magazine he left behind at home, too! I know exactly what to do in order to win!” Hop declares.

“You know I was right there most of the time, right?” Gloria replies, teasing him. “I watched those matches with you, and we read those books together.”

“Well…” Hop looks down, a little sheepish, before brightening. “Maybe so, but that will only make all the better when I do win! Don’t you think so?”

“Whatever you say,” she replies. His response was worth calling herself out for being a massive fan of Leon’s right in front of him, but if he thinks anything about it, he certainly doesn’t say it out loud. If it isn’t weird for Hop, then it shouldn’t be weird for her, even if they aren’t related.

Leon interrupts their banter to get the battle underway, and then Gloria has to focus on the task at hand. Though Sobble has never been in a battle before, she knows that neither of Hop’s Pokemon have either, not even Wooloo who he has had for quite some time. Wooloo is not exactly an easy opponent, but Sobble holds his own, until Hop is forced to bring out Scorbunny.

This part of the battle is actually much easier, due to the advantage that Sobble has over Scorbunny. She isn’t sure if Hop took that into consideration when choosing, but he seems almost amazed that Gloria is able to take advantage of the type difference, and she once again has to remind him that she has been studying at his side all these years.

When Gloria pulls through, when she and Sobble take the victory, Hop stares at her in surprise before giving her a smile and saying, “Well, this is a shock! I guess you weren’t kidding when you said you’ve been paying attention all this time!”

Leon steps forward. “You both did great! You and your Pokemon fought hard. Made me almost want to let Charizard out and join in on the fun! And Gloria…” Now, he steps even closer, but this time, close to her. “You’ve got real promise! In fact, I’ve got a favor to ask you. Be a real rival to Hop, would you? Push him, and make the both of you stronger!”

After worrying so much about Leon watching her first battle, she is suddenly very glad that he did, if only to have him praise her like this. Not only is she getting praised by the man she has adored since childhood, but she is getting acknowledged by the champion, and even with her years of adoration, it is still sometimes difficult to not separate those two facts. She wants to say something now, something that might get her even more praise from him, but, right on time, Hop jumps back into the conversation.

“I already want to get stronger and stronger! You’ve seen me battle, now, Lee, so come on- you’ve got to let me take on the gyms!”

“You? Join the gym challenge? You think you’re ready for the single greatest competition in the Galar region? Not putting the cart before the Rapidash there, little brother?” Leon asks, raising a brow and doing a very good job of pretending that he still thinks they’re too young for it.

“Come  _ on _ ,” Hop whines, “you know we’re ready! Me and Gloria both, we’ve been preparing our whole lives for this, so please!”

“If that’s really what you want to do, you two have a whole lot you still need to learn about Pokemon,” Leon finally says. “Before you think about getting gym badges, best to think about getting a Pokedex. A trainer’s Pokedex helps them learn lots of things about all the Pokemon out there, including their strengths.”

“We know all about  _ that _ ,” Hop interrupts. “We hung out with Sonia just as much as you did back in the day. “We just have to go to her gran if we want a Pokedex! So we’ll go see the professor, and then you’ll see!”

He doesn’t even give Leon a chance to agree that they can talk about it after that before charging off again, leaving Gloria behind as well. She turns to Leon, wondering if it’s too late to talk about her victory a little more, but all Leon says is, “You’d better hurry after him! I’ll meet up with you guys at the lab in a bit, alright?”

“Alright,” she agrees, hiding her disappointment as she follows after Hop. It doesn’t take her long to catch up to him, though, because he is once again distracted by the gate at her house. This time, however, there is no Wooloo sitting outside the gate.

In fact, this time, the gate is hanging wide open.


	4. Chapter 4

“The gate’s open!” Hop cries. “And that Wooloo that’s always playing there...he was tackling the fence pretty hard yesterday. You don’t think he was at it again today? Do you think he actually broke through there?”

“Probably,” Gloria replies, feeling a bit of dread setting in even as she says it.

“But it’s off-limits! Nobody’s supposed to go in there! You remember when Sonia went in once, right? She came in a real state, and that was nothing compared to the earful she got from her gran!” He is unable to disguise his worry, but then, a look of calm determination overcomes him. “Gloria...what do you say?”

“I don’t know,” she replies, unsure of herself and unsure of what he is asking her to do. But she imagines Leon in that moment, and her hesitation begins to fade. He always tries to play the hero, and he wouldn’t have to even think about it. “But...well, we can’t just do nothing! We should help him.”

“Right? Even if we’re not supposed to, this is the kind of scene where you simply have to do what’s needed!” Hop says. She knows that he must be thinking the same thing she is.

And so the two set off into the Slumbering Weald, a place they have only ever been told to stay away from, a place that has always been a stone’s throw away, and yet felt like part of another world. Though it’s sunny beyond the fence, once they have crossed through, fog begins to set in, and the further they go into the bunch of trees, the foggier it becomes. Still, they press on, and Gloria tries not to let her worry show on her face.

It is uncomfortably silent until Hop begins to speak again. “That Wooloo...where do you think it got off to? The fog is coming on thick now...if we don’t find him soon, this might be trouble.”

“He couldn’t have gotten too far,” she says, even though she has no way of knowing that for sure. She was in such a hurry this morning to see Leon again that she hadn’t even paid attention to the gate, or if the Wooloo was still there. For all she knows, it got out hours and hours ago, and is already well beyond the point of being found.

“You’re right,” he says absentmindedly, and the two press on, startled when they hear a strange sort of howling. Hop jumps and cries, “ Did you hear that? Was that a Pokemon crying out, you think?! Come on, Gloria! That Wooloo might be in real trouble!”

Again, she says nothing of her true worries as they pick up the pace, which is no easy task. The fog is so thick now that they can hardly see, and running is not the best idea under these conditions. It gets so bad that Hop speaks up about it again, saying, “This is mad...I can’t even see my hand in front of my face! I think I get now why this place is off-limits…”

And then, suddenly and silently, it appears before them.

_ It _ is what appears to be a very large, doglike Pokemon, and she and Hop both jump back when they realize that it is sitting right in front of them, staring them down with an unreadable expression.

“What in the-?!” Hop exclaims, but Gloria has already lept into action, pulling out her lone Pokeball and sending out her Sobble. She doesn’t know why she does it; her new Pokemon is very low level and has only ever battled against Hop, and she knows nothing about this mysterious creature. It might have been better to run for it, or at least not expose a third party to the danger, but she has reacted before she can stop herself, entering into a battle with the hopes that she can protect Hop.

However, with the battle underway, she notices two things very quickly; first, she notices that the strange Pokemon does not attack in return, and second, she notices that her Sobble’s attacks do nothing. They seem to be stopped in midair, and repelled entirely. And, all the while, the fog grows thicker, as she keeps up what she already knows to be a pointless fight.

Soon enough, Hop is crying out to her, asking if she’s okay because he can no longer see her. The fog is so thick that neither of them can see anything, and then, before she can respond, she grows suddenly dizzy, collapsing to the ground with her Pokeball in hand. She calls back her Sobble just before she blacks out entirely.

~X~

When Gloria finally comes to, she is aware of Hop’s voice before she properly sits up.

“Wha-? Lee? How’d you manage to find your way here?” he asks, still sounding a little groggy, but becoming more coherent with every word. By focusing on him, she is able to come back to her own senses, and looks between Hop and his older brother. “You’re pants with directions. You always get lost!”

“Oh, that’s nice to hear from the little brother who had me worried sick!” Leon scolds.  _ Leon _ . Gloria abruptly stands up, ignoring the way she sways a little bit as she does, when she fully understands that it’s Leon Hop is talking to. “I’d been waiting ages for you two, and you never showed! Of course I came looking for the both of you!”

Rather than responding to that, Hop seems to remember the reason they came out all this way and says, “Wait, where’s the Wooloo?! We were trying to rescue that Wooloo!”

Leon points a short distance away, where his Charizard sits with a very familiar Wooloo, the source of all their trouble. “The little chap’s just fine. Though all of you had fainted by the time I found you here. You know this place is out of bounds,” he says, shaking his head. “But...it took courage to come here all the same. And I can understand well enough why you did it. You two did good!” By the end of his sentence, he has brightened considerably, beaming at them. Gloria realizes that she hasn’t said anything, but finds that she can’t think of anything to say with Leon smiling at her like that.

“At least that Wooloo’s alright. Yeah, Gloria?” Hop asks, but continues without giving her a chance to answer. “I thought we’d had it when the weird fog started rolling in and that mad Pokemon attacked, but at least it wasn’t all for nothing!”

Leon cocks his head. “Attacked by some mad Pokemon? What are you talking about, Hop?”

“It seemed loads stronger than any Pokemon I’ve ever seen. And it just had this sort of presence...our moves didn’t even touch it. I mean, really, they seemed to pass right through it!”

He considers this for a moment. “Your moves passed right through it? So, the fearsome Pokemon they say live in the Slumbering Weald...are they actually illusions or something?” Leon looks troubled for only a moment before returning to his usual smile. “Get strong enough and maybe the two of you could be the ones to reveal the truth someday!”

At this, Gloria can’t help but laugh, and Hop soon joins her. It’s just like Leon to say something like that, and he must realize it as well, because it isn’t long before he’s laughing with them as well. When the three of them finally settle down, he says, “For now, let’s simply get out of this place. You’ll be alright now that I’m here with you!”

“Thank you for coming to look for us.” It’s the first thing that Gloria has properly said since coming to. She’s glad that she hasn’t completely forgotten how to speak, but of course, she knows that all of that is only due to Leon’s presence.

“Don’t mention it,” he replies, giving her a wide grin before turning to lead them back home. Or, rather, to follow Charizard’s lead back home.

“Even if we did get an earful from Lee, what an experience! This’ll make a pretty fine first page in the tale of my legend!” Hop exclaims, which causes Leon to laugh.

“Passing out and needing your biggest rival to come save you? I don’t know about that,” his brother teases, and Hop scowls.

“Well, maybe I’d leave that part out!” he protests.

“Oh, wait, I’m not your biggest rival though,” Leon continues. “That would be Gloria, right? Let me guess, you’d much prefer having a pretty girl wake you up than your big brother, huh?”

“Lee! Don’t say it like that!”

“What, does it make you jealous?” he teases. “How do you think I feel, knowing Gloria’s replaced me as your biggest rival? Not that I can blame you, now that I’ve seen how she’s grown up!”

The two bicker back and forth, and Gloria follows along. There’s no way for her to fit into this conversation with how they snap at each other so quickly, but she wouldn’t be able to speak even if there were room for her. She knows that Leon’s teasing is just teasing, and that the things he says about her don’t mean anything, but it’s hard not to get weak in the knees, hearing him actually say such things.

After this, she’s sure that she’s going to be replaying his voice in her head for a while, calling her cute over and over again. She should probably spend more time worrying about the Pokemon she and Hop encountered, but it disappeared like it never existed to begin with. Leon is still very much real, and she’s still just as obsessed with him as she was when she was a kid.


	5. Chapter 5

Once they make it back into Postwick, Leon sets off, back to their original meeting point, and Hop sets off to follow after him. Before he leaves, he reminds Gloria to tell her mother where she’s going; she probably would have mentioned it before, if the missing Wooloo hadn’t distracted her so much.

Whatever the case, she hurries inside, deciding to let Sobble out for the moment. She isn’t sure why she does it. Perhaps because her mother loved Sobble so much the night before, and she might be more less upset about Gloria leaving, probably taking the first step on a much longer journey, if she’s too busy fawning over how cute the little guy is.

And for a few minutes, that’s exactly what happens. Her mother coos over Sobble, who delights in the attention, and just when Gloria feels the moment is right, she opens her mouth, only to be interrupted by her mother.

“I already heard the news from young Leon,” she says. “I’m glad someone bothered to tell me! Off to Wedgehurst, are you?”

“Oh, he already stopped by?” she asks, and her mother grins at her.

“A little while ago, actually. I was thinking you’d already left, but I’m glad you came by to tell me yourself. And that Leon...he sure has grown up, hasn’t he?”

“I...I guess so,” Gloria mumbles, feeling her face heat up. It’s not as if her mother didn’t see him last night, and hasn’t seen him on TV a million times.

“I just remember how you always used to swoon and sigh in front of the telly,” she muses, and Gloria is quick to put a stop to that.

“Well, anyway, I really should be heading out! Hop will be waiting for me at the lab,” she interrupts.

“Oh, alright. Hurry off on your big adventure!” With that, her mother gives her a bit of money, before turning her attention to the small Pokemon on the floor. “And you, Sobble! Look after my little Gloria!”

With that, she calls him back to his ball, and sets says goodbye to her mother one last time before heading out the door. She remembers the way to Wedgehurst well enough, and even remembers where the lab is, taking a bit of time to make her way there as she looks at the different Pokemon she passes on her way. Hop probably took the whole trip running, so she doesn’t even attempt to catch up to him.

When she does make it to the lab, Leon is standing outside with his Charizard, waiting to greet her. She really wishes that there were some way to get used to seeing him, so that her heart didn’t leap into her throat every time she caught sight of him. He waves her over, smiling that same damn smile, and when she approaches him, he says, “Well done! You reached the goal and managed to find the Pokemon Research Lab! You did a far sight better than I did my first time. Did I ever tell you about that?”

“I think Hop might have mentioned it,” she replies. Of course, she memorizes every story that Hop tells her about Leon, both impressive and embarrassing alike.

“Well, you know how hopeless I am with directions. I’m sure glad I’ve got Charizard with me, to keep me from getting lost all the time,” he says. “Come on, let’s head on in! Hop managed to beat me here, and was already on his way out when I got here!”

Leon opens the door for her, and Gloria steps into the somewhat familiar lab. It’s been a very long time since she’s had any reason to come out here, and things have changed, but it’s still the same place she remembers. Leon looks around with her, before commenting, “I’ve got to give it to Professor Magnolia Everything in here looks fascinating.”

Gloria nods, and before she has a chance to reply, a voice rings out from the landing above them. “What is it today, Leon? Looking for info on another never-before-seen, super strong Pokemon? I wish you’d stop with these outlandish requests,” Sonia says, stepping out and beginning to make her way down the stairs.

Her Yamper follows her, but quickly gets ahead of her, bounding down the stairs and straight up to Leon, who says, “Good to see you too, Yamper!” He turns to Gloria as he continues, “Yamper here is a real champ when it comes to helping you find your way around. He came to my rescue plenty of times back in the day, when I got lost on the road.”

“Did you forget we were rivals during our gym challenge? It wasn’t just Yamper helping you out. I did too.” Sonia shakes her head as she reaches the pair. “Anyway, it’s great to see you, Gloria!”

“She’s starting off as a trainer today. Set her on the right path, would you?” Even as he says it, Leon has already started making his way for the door. “I need to get going and check on Hop, but you can handle it from here!”

Just like that, he’s gone, and Sonia sighs. Gloria feels like sighing too, but probably for a different reason. “What does he think I am? He’s always got his head in the clouds. It’s no wonder he gets lost all the time,” Sonia mutters.

Gloria isn’t sure what she should say to that. It feels odd to listen to Sonia talk about Leon like she knows him so well, but then, she does. They used to travel together, and were better friends than he and Gloria. She’s his age, and had the chance to be much closer to him, something that Gloria definitely doesn’t like to think about. Fortunately, Sonia doesn’t seem to notice her silence, and moves on to another topic right away.

“You’ve got a Rotom phone, don’t you? You can use that to look at a map, and it has GPS,” she explains. “That said, Leon still gets lost, so...Oh, sorry. Anyway, let me install your Pokedex really quick!”

In a flash, Sonia has everything updated for her, and hands her phone back to her, beaming. “Just so you know, that Pokedex is a gift from my gran! You should stop by and let her know I gave it to you. You remember where our house is, right?”

“Right,” Gloria agrees. Though her memories of that are vague as well, she doesn’t think she’ll have too much trouble if she uses her phone’s GPS. And really, as pleasant as Sonia has been, she wants to leave. She feels uncomfortable, intimidated even, by the girl who knows Leon so much better than she does, even though she knows that she’s being stupid, and that Sonia has no idea that she even feels this way.

She starts off for Sonia’s family home, running into Hop along the way. “Lee went on ahead, but he said I should wait for you,” he says. “Did you get your Pokedex from Sonia?”

Before they leave town, he insists on giving her a grand tour of the Pokemon Center, as if she’s never seen one before. Despite growing up at his side and learning these things at the same time he did, he always takes it upon himself to explain things as if she is a newcomer. Hop really does love to play the part of the teacher.

As they walk, he goes on about the gym challenge, and how disappointing it is that Leon still doesn’t seem to think he’s ready for it, when the period to register is almost at its end. If they don’t manage to secure endorsement soon, then it will be another long year before they have a chance of competing.

“I’m thinking we ought to talk to the professor and see if she can help!” he declares. “And it’s got to be both of us, since we’re rivals. We can keep each other motivated! Of course, I wouldn’t think of starting my legend without you!”

Soon enough, they reach the professor’s house, where Leon seems to have only recently arrived, despite his considerable head start. He is talking with the professor, and when they are within earshot, they can hear him ask, “So, have you unraveled all the secrets of the Dynamax phenomenon yet?”

“Oh goodness, no. The whole thing is still full of questions. I’d hoped that my granddaughter would take over my research, but…” She trails off, then turns, as if noticing Hop and Gloria for the first time. “Dear me, I’m sorry! I didn’t even notice my guests!

“Welcome, young trainers,” she says, overly formal, as if they don’t already know each other. Though it has been some time since the last time either of them came over. She invites them inside, where they can continue the discussion.

“Why, Hop, dear. I see Wooloo has made some new friends. And, Gloria, Leon tells me you’ve received your first Pokemon!” Magnolia continues. “I trust you received the Pokedex from Sonia. I’m sure you’ll have it completed in no time!”

The conversation turns to Pokemon then, with Leon interjecting time and again, his excitement about the topic showing, particularly when it turns to Dynamaxing. That is the primary focus of her field of research, and one of his favorite topics, besides.

“here you go again, Leon, always talking about Pokemon. There are other things that are worth knowing about too, you know. Like how many different types of tea there are!” she chides him.

Hop, seeing his opportunity, interjects. “Hey, Professor, do us a favor, would you? Help me convince Lee he should endorse us for the gym challenge!”

“Oh, Leon,” she says with a sigh, “why won’t you endorse them?”

“Hop and Gloria only just started out as Pokemon trainers! There’s still loads of things they don’t know yet!”

“Dearie, I thought your dream was to have everyone in the Galar region become strong trainers. Isn’t that right?” she asks him this in a gentle, patient tone of voice, reminding him that, champion though he may be, no matter how grown up he is, she is still the true grown up in the situation.

“Well, yeah...you’re not wrong. That goal’s precisely why I gave them both Pokemon, in fact,” he says, and pauses for a bit, actually giving it a bit of thought. He isn’t difficult to convince, because Gloria is half-convinced that he’s been planning it all along, and is only drawing it out to make sure that she and Hop are really sure, once and for all, that they’re ready for this. “Right, then. In that case...how about this? Let’s see if the two of you can show me such a brilliant battle that I’m left with no choice but to endorse you.”

Hop brightens at this, already sensing that things are going to go his way, and says, “Right! I’ll be waiting outside, Gloria!”

Outside, there is an area to practice battle, just like at Hop’s house, and that is where he and Gloria prepare for their big showdown. Hop faces her down with fresh determination, saying, “I’m going to become the best Pokemon trainer there is! And to do that, I need endorsement to take part in the gym challenge! Come at me with everything you have so we can prove to Lee that we’ve got what it takes!”

Their second battle, against each other and in general, and this time, both Magnolia and Leon are there to watch it. Gloria somehow feels both less and more nervous than the first time, and tries to focus on what she needs to do to secure another win. Leon steps up to say something to them before letting them have at it.

“Listen, you two. The reason I’m unbeatable is because I learn from every battle I see or take part in,” he says. “That’s how I’ve gotten to where I am today. So show me something good in this battle!”

With that, they’re off, with Hop making some bold statement about his legend again, and Gloria doing her best to focus so that she does not humiliate herself. It comes a little bit easier to her this time, and as she gets into the swing of things, she starts to think that she could get used to this, that she might actually understand how this all works. When she secures her second victory, that feeling is doubled.

“Gutted that I lost...but I’d expect nothing less from my rival!” says Hop, and she can’t tell if he’s taking it hard and trying to cover it with his words, or if he really is trying to let it roll right off him. “And I even got my Pokeball throw perfect, too! The sting of defeat, and the joy of victory...I guess going through both is the key to the two of us getting stronger, right?”

“Gloria! Hop! Well, after seeing a match like that one...I suppose I’ve little choice but to give you both an endorsement as champion!” Leon runs up to them, saying this with a grin. Just like that, he agrees to hand over exactly what they’ve been wanting.

“Yes!” Hop cheers, looking absolutely ecstatic. “Thanks, Lee! I swear I’m going to win my way through the gym challenge to reach you!”

“You may both be young still, and plenty rough around the edges, but it was a proper battle. Charizard and I were both feeling the excitement in every last cell in our bodies!” Leon continues. “Hop, you’ve always tended to get caught in things like how you throw your Pokeball out...things that have nothing to do with real strength. Honestly, I’d been worried about you still obsessing over that sort of nonsense, but it seem you really have grown a bit, Little Brother!

“And, Gloria...well, your performance has been well sweet both times, but I think you’ve gathered that by now. If I had to give you any advice, I would say watch out that you don’t get too distracted during gym matches. Not that I think that will be much of a problem…” The way he says it causes her to go hot all over. It’s as if he knows, like he’s already figured out that the only thing that has given her any sort of distraction is him.

But if he’s having a go at her, he doesn’t keep it up and he doesn’t say so directly. Instead, he moves on to the main event; presenting them with their endorsement letters. Of course, he has them on him, all ready to go, and she feels a bit of satisfaction, knowing that she was right. He’s been planning this, and all the hesitation was part of a test, one that their last battle has ensured that they passed. It takes a bit to get Hop to settle down once he has it in his hands, but once he does, he seems almost ready to set off right then and there.

“Alright, Gloria! You and me are going to train up against one another to aim for that championship title!” he says. “The more we keep battling against one another, the m-”

He doesn’t finish his sentence, stopping short as a bright light streaks across the sky just above them, taking the attention of all four of them. It’s a shooting star, and not only that, but it strikes the ground, landing not far from where they are standing.

They rush over to it, where they can inspect it more closely, and Hop says, “Huh? What was that?! Gloria! Would you look at this? They’re wishing stars!” He bends over to pick up some of the stones that fell from the sky, mysteriously not too hot for him to touch. “Since there are two of them, you should take one yourself!”

He hands one to Gloria, who is reluctant to touch it, but since Hop was able to do so without getting hurt, she accepts it. She turns it over in her hands, marveling at it, while Hop continues talking. “With one of these, my Pokemon can Dynamax! They’re gonna be massive!  _ Yes _ !”

“Trust you to pull something like this!” Leon says. “They say wishing stars fall down for those who have a true wish in their heart, you know.”

“I will be the greatest trainer ever. I  _ will _ be the greatest trainer ever!” When he repeats it a third time, he shouts it at the top of his lungs. “There, I’ve said it three times, so surely my wish will come true now, right?”

“Don’t be silly, Hop,” says Magnolia, ever the practical one. “Those wishing stars are composed of a curious sort of rock containing unknown power. They are one of the most precious resources we have here in the Galar region. But they won’t do anything for you in that state. Give them to me now and I’ll have you sorted.”

“Ah, right. You’ve done heaps of research on the Dynamax phenomenon, haven’t you, Professor? Then please! Give Gloria and me the power to Dynamax our Pokemon!” And so, immediately after finding them, both Hop and Gloria turn over the wishing stars. “First we got to battle against that mad Pokemon in the Slumbering Weald, and now this. It really feels like we’re getting caught up in the adventure of a lifetime!”

“I do understand your excitement, young man, but don’t get carried away! You want to save your energy for tomorrow’s journey!” Magnolia scolds him, but there is affection in her tone.

“Seems I came back home right in time for all the excitement!” Sonia calls out, and the four turn to see her approaching. Gloria can’t help but look between her and Leon, searching for something in either of their expressions that indicate one is especially happy to see the other. Though she tries to tell herself that there are several reasons her jealousy is stupid, she still can’t stop herself from looking.

“Hey, you lot, why not have some dinner. You must be hungry, right?” asks Sonia, once she is a bit closer. “I’ve been totally obsessed with making the latest trendy curries.”

Leon  _ does _ seem especially excited to be invited to dinner, but Gloria isn’t sure if that is a reason for concern, and is stuck somewhere between trying to convince herself that it doesn’t mean anything, and trying to convince herself that whether it does or not is of no concern to her. The three of them stay so late that they are invited to spend the night, calling home to let their families know where they are.

Gloria gets to sleep on Sonia’s bedroom floor, an air mattress blown up for her, while Leon and Hop are in the living room. It’s strange knowing that she’s sleeping in the same house as Leon- Hop, not so much, because their sleepovers did not stop until a few years ago- and stranger still to be sharing a room with Sonia. Fortunately, Gloria is tired enough that she is able to go to sleep without having to make too much conversation.

Before she goes to sleep, she promises herself that she will try to be more fair to Sonia from here on out. Sonia has never been anything but nice to her, and whether there is anything between her and Leon or not, that is no reason to shut her out. After all, it’s not like she could ever  _ steal _ Leon from Gloria, since Gloria has never had a chance to begin with.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love this game but it is so slow to actually start that I swear it's gonna take another million chapters before anyone actually fucks :(

When she wakes up the next morning, Sonia is already up, and tells her that both of the boys are already up as well.

“Actually,” she says, “Leon already headed out. Today’s the last day to register for the gym challenge, so you and Hop should head out soon.”

Trying to hide her disappointment that Leon has already left, Gloria gets up and heads into the kitchen, where Hop is waiting for her. When he sees her, he says, “It’s morning at last! And time for our adventure to truly start!”

The professor enters the kitchen then, saying, “Good morning to you, young challengers.” As she does, she puts on some tea and gets breakfast started, while Sonia starts in on a topic she’s clearly wanted to discuss since last night, but didn’t have a chance to, in all of the excitement.

“Hop, is it true you really met some Pokemon you didn’t recognize? Is there anything more you can tell me about it?”

“Er, well, there was weird heavy fog, and then this even weirder Pokemon appeared...Gloria tried to fight it off! But then I think we both passed out or something. It’s all pretty hazy.” Hop struggles his way through the story, trying to describe it while not doing a very good job of it.

“A right fount of information you are,” Sonia says with a sigh. Gloria wonders if she should offer some information of her own, but before she can decide to, Magnolia leaves pulls something from the pocket of her lab coat.

“Gloria, Hop, these are for you,” she says, handing the bands over. “Those are your Dynamax bands. I made them by fitting the wishing stars you found last night into the bands.”

“Thank you so much,” Gloria says, as she puts hers on, and Hop echoes the sentiment.

“Thanks, professor! This is brilliant! It’s just like the one Lee has on him, too! Now we can Dynamax our Pokemon just like he does!”

“My word, you don’t waste any time, do you? I think you’ll find it’s not so simple as all that,” Magnolia says. “There are a number of conditions you must meet if you hope to have your Pokemon Dynamax and take on that gigantic form.”

But Hop doesn’t seem to have heard a word, still too excited to let anything bring him back to reality. Even as the group eats, and Magnolia explains a few more things about their journey to them, telling them about some of the Pokemon they might encounter, he is practically bouncing in his seat. By the time it’s time to go, his excitement is impossible to contain.

“The legend of my reign is finally about to begin! Come on, Gloria! I’ll bet you to the station!” He charges out without another word, getting a bit of a head start because Gloria hangs back for just a moment, to thank Magnolia and Sonia for all of their hospitality. Then she takes off after him, hurrying to the station so that they can catch a train to Motostoke.

Just as they are about to board, familiar voices ring out across the station, stopping them and reminding them of something very important that they have both forgotten in their rush to get to Motostoke. Hop and Gloria stop as their mothers cross the station, ready to see them off.

“Not so fast, you two!”

“What’re you doing here, mum?” Hop asks, a bit of guilt clear in his face.

“I knew this day was coming, especially since Leon came back to visit, bringing you that Scorbunny,” his mother replies.

“Professor Magnolia was kind enough to let us know that you two were setting out,” Gloria’s mother explains. “So, here, a last little gift to see you well set on your way. All the kit you’ll need for camping!”

She hands it over, and Gloria grins, thanking her as she packs it away. Hop has received the same gift from his own mother, also pausing to pack it up. When they both stand again, Gloria’s mother continues, “No matter what happens out there, if you and your partner are together, I know you’ll be fine.”

“I promise I’ll be careful,” she replies.

“Just think how lucky you are!” Hop says to his own mum. “Mother to the first ever pair of champion brothers! Because I’m certain to be the champion next. You’ll see!”

“Of course you will be darling,” she says, seeming more amused than assured, perhaps because she has heard this a million times before. It’s hard to tell if she really believes him or not, though. “Anyway, do have fun and take care of yourselves! You’ll be welcome back home any time!”

“Wish us luck! Not that we’ll need it!” he declares. “Come on, we’re off!”

Gloria waves goodbye to her mother one last time before boarding the train, and finding a seat with Hop. On the way to Motostoke, he talks on and on about anything and everything, but he seems particularly interested in the Wild Area, a place that the two have only ever heard about. It’s a huge place, where the weather is unpredictable and countless Pokemon wander, a place that Leon has talked quite a bit about, praising it as the best place in all of Galar to train and build a team.

It seems almost too convenient that, when their trains stops, it is not at the Motostoke station, but at the station near an entrance to the Wild Area. She and Hop go out to investigate.

“Hey, Mr. Station Master! Isn’t this the Wild Area? What’re we stopped here for?”

“Yes,” the man replies, “this is the Wild Area station, make no mistake. I’m sorry to tell you that the train is halted, due to a flock on Wooloo on the tracks.”

Hop beams. “What’s there to be sorry about? This is brilliant! You get it, don’t you, Gloria? This is the best possible place to put together the greatest team!”

“We can get through to Motostoke through here, right?” she asks.

“Yeah, it’s pretty much a straight shot if you don’t get too mixed up, like  _ some _ people might. I think we have plenty of time to get through, build our teams along the way, and still make it before registration closes,” Hop replies.

“You think?”

“I know! Come on, if you go right in, you can see the gates to Motostoke straight away, so run if you don’t believe me.”

The two banter like this as they enter the wild area, and sure enough, Gloria can see the gates to the city in the distance. Not only that, but she sees a familiar face, in the form of Sonia.

“Oh, hello!” Hop says. “If it isn’t Sonia!”

“My gran gave me a proper earful, in her own way…’those two young trainers are setting off on a journey, but what are you doing with your life?’ Ah...never you mind that!” She shakes her head, stopping just when she starts to get off on a tangent. “Nothing to worry yourselves over! Besides, I’d been quite curious about that Pokemon you two met in the forest. I’d been thinking I should look into it, so the timing works out fine! If I discover something really huge, then maybe even Gran’ll admit I’ve got some talent!”

“Yikes, being an adult has got its own challenges, eh?” asks Hop, turning to Gloria.

“I said you needn’t worry about it! I’m glad to be on the road. Really! It’s been ages. It’ll be great to fish and camp and rough it outside again.” It’s hard to tell if Sonia is being genuine, or if she is just trying to convince herself.

She walks with the two of them for a bit, explaining some things about the Wild Area and Dynamaxing. Gloria wonders if this means that they’re going to be running into Sonia a lot on their journey, and tries to figure out how to feel about that. Once again, she reminds herself that she has no reason to hold any negative feelings towards Sonia, but then Sonia starts talking about her first journey, and every time Leon comes up, it’s difficult to remember that she has no right to be jealous.

Eventually, the three go their separate ways, and Gloria makes her way to Motostoke.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I know, it's slow, it's a slow burn. They're gonna fuck in like chapter 14 or 15 though, so I at least have some idea of that now. Sorry the game has the pace it does I guess.

Just as soon as she makes it into Motostoke, Sonia is there again, like she was waiting for her or something. Maybe she was, and maybe Gloria should thank her for it, but since she doesn’t know for sure, she ends up not saying anything about it, and just waves as Sonia comes up to her.

“Hey there!” Sonia says. “Real ace of you to make it through the Wild Area!”

She offers to show Gloria something in the Pokemon Center, and Gloria appreciates the help and even appreciates the praise a little bit, but at the same time, can’t help but feel a little bit bitter, because it definitely makes the age difference between the two of them all the more noticeable. The more helpful Sonia tries to be, the harder it is for Gloria to shake her intimidation and jealousy.

Inside the Pokemon Center, she shows Gloria how to make her own league card. Of course, Gloria won’t actually be able to do it until after she’s registered and has her official number and everything, but Sonia explains the basics to her anyway. While she does, Gloria thinks fondly of her small collection back home. She has a few of Leon’s throughout the years, retired images from throughout his career, because he would always send them to her and Hop.

It’s weird to think of her having her own card to pass around, to send back home to her mother, and that collectors might someday treasure. Will Leon want one of her cards? She shakes that thought out of her head as soon as it comes to her. There’s no way the champion will want one of her cards for any reason other than to be polite, because she’s like a little sister to him. It’s better that she doesn’t even think about stuff like that.

She and Sonia leave the Pokemon Center, and Sonia comments on how big the city is in comparison to both of their hometowns. “But not to worry! Sonia is here to show you around a bit!”

As they walk, she muses about the ceremony later that day. “The opening ceremony, huh...I get a bit worked up when I think about how exciting and moving it was to actually stand on a stadium’s pitch for the first time!” Sometimes it is easy to forget that Sonia was even there back then, at Leon’s first opening ceremony- his only opening ceremony as a gym challenger. Sonia’s only opening ceremony ever.

But she was, and Gloria even received a league card from her that year, though she didn’t treasure it nearly as much as any of Leon’s, and definitely lost it somewhere a long time ago. Now, she feels a little bad about it, listening to the way that Sonia talks, and she isn’t sure why. She tries not to dwell on it as Sonia shows her around town, and how to get to the stadium.

“Use the lift straight ahead to get to the stadium, you can’t miss it,” she says, and cuts their tour short. “Well, laters! I’m going to swing by the shops while I’m here, but don’t forget to register.”

As if she could forget!

She heads straight forward, just as Sonia told her to, but just when she reaches the lift, she hears a familiar roar, her heart leaping into her throat. Sure enough, she turns around to see a Charizard in the middle of the street and, following along behind it, Leon himself. He gives her a happy wave, his signature bright smile almost blinding after not seeing it for, oh, a day or so.

“I’d surely never make it to the stadium without you to show me the way, partner. Even with a huge old thing like this bang in the middle of the city, I still get lost,” he says, as he catches up to his Charizard. “Gloria! One look tells me that you’ve become a trainer worth of that endorsement I gave you. You ready to head up to the stadium? I bet Hop is already waiting for you up there, knowing him.”

“I’m sure he is,” she replies, glad that she is able to find her voice around him more easily each time they talk. Maybe if they keep this up, she can adjust to being friends with him, act normal around him, and steadily start to get over this impossible crush. “He’s raced me every step of the way.”

“That sounds about right. Well, if you go straight up, you’ll be at the stadium, I’m pretty sure. If it’s where I think it is, anyway, you can’t miss it!” He waves as he sends her off, and she is not able to get up the nerve to ask him if he wants to go with her. Maybe he has something else to do in the city, or maybe he just doesn’t want to go with her, even though they should be going to the right place.

Gloria tries not to overthink it, and just like Sonia and Leon bother assured her, there is no way for her to miss the large stadium in front of her. Though this is the stadium where Motostoke’s gym challenge takes place, it is larger than most stadiums because it is also used for most official league business, being in a big city like this. The opening ceremony is held here, as well as a lot of exhibition matches, and Motostoke is always bustling as a result. And, sure enough, Hop is pacing back and forth right outside, waiting for her.

“You made it!” he says. “Motostoke stadium...this is where the opening ceremony will be for the gym challenge...my mum...your mum...the whole world! It’s getting me a bit nervous, really.”

“Nervous?” she echoes, surprised to hear him admit to something like that. Quickly, he covers his tracks.

“Naw, this isn’t nerves. I’m only trembling because I’m so excited! Come on, Gloria! It’s time the world learned our names!”

The two of them head inside to look for the registration counter, where another boy is finishing up his registration. As they cross paths, the boy shoves past them, an arrogant smile on his face.

“Seriously? What a piece of work…” Hop mutters, just loudly enough for the boy to hear it, but of course, he doesn’t react. If he’s going to be in the gym challenge as well, they definitely haven’t seen the last of him, but soon enough, the excitement of registering brings Hop’s smile back.

The man at the counter says, “If you’re here to register for the gym challenge, I’ll need to see your endorsement, please.”

Gloria had figured as much before she came inside. Back at the Pokemon Center, she’d moved her endorsement letter from her bag to her sweater pocket, so she is able to get hers out before Hop gets his.

“Fancy that...this is the first time we’ve had a challenger endorsed by the champion!”

“Well, now you have two because I am as well!” Hop says, puffing his chest a bit as he produces his letter.

“What?! Two of you at once?! I wonder what’s come over Leon this year...the two of you must be something special,” the man muses.

“I’m Hop! I’m Leon’s little brother, in fact. And the next champion. Get me all signed up, would you?” He gives a little smirk as he says this, trying to play it cool, but Gloria knows that he’s ecstatic right now, probably resisting the urge to jump up and down in front of everyone.

“W-well, yes, I am trying to, if you’ll just give me a moment.” Without conversation to distract them, the man gets back to work, and soon enough, looks back up at both of them. “There! You two have been successfully registered as gym challengers. You can now choose your preferred number for your uniform, if you’d be so kind? And here, please wear this challenger band at all times to identify yourself as a gym challenger.”

He passes their bands over the desk, and takes down their numbers, telling them that their uniforms will be ready in time for the ceremony the next day.

“All the trainers taking part have been booked a room at the nearby Budew Drop Inn,” he finishes, before giving them both directions to the hotel.

“That’s the league chairman for you! Even booked us all hotel rooms!” Hop says with a laugh.

“Want to head on over?” asks Gloria, and he nods, not waiting another moment before setting off, Gloria breaking into a run to catch up with him. Fortunately, the hotel really is right down the road, so the two of them reach it very quickly.

Running into Sonia is becoming a bit of a routine, because there she is in the lobby of their hotel. “Hiya! Looks like you both got yourselves registered.”

“Oh, hey, Sonia! What’re you doing at our hotel?” asks Hop.

“I’m researching the mysterious Pokemon that are said to be in the Slumbering Weald. I reckon if I look into some of Galar’s legends, I might figure something out. Care to join me? You’re here already anyway,” she says, and as she speaks, she keeps gesturing to a statue behind her, of an armored man with a sword and a shield.

“What’s this, then?”

“It’s a statue of the hero who once saved the Galar region. I could run through the legend right quick, if you fancy?” she says. By now, Hop and Gloria both know it well enough, but they humor Sonia, letting her tell them the familiar story anyway.

“Long ago...a great black storm covered the Galar region. People called it ‘the Darkest Day.’ The land was assaulted by gigantic Pokemon...but they were defeated by a single young hero bearing a sword and a shield,” she says, at least giving them the short version of the tale. “This statue here is meant to depict the young hero of that legend.”

“Huh,” says Hop. “I suppose that hero must’ve been about as strong as Lee, then!”

Gloria was just thinking the same thing. A champion is the closest thing they have to a hero in this day and age, and it’s not hard to imagine Leon doing battle with a sword and shield, defending everyone in Galar, instead of just winning exciting battles on TV.

“Looks like you’re going to have your hands full with plenty of research though, Sonia. Black storms and swords and shields and all…” he continues.

“I’ll muddle through somehow, don’t you worry!” she assures him. “You two are staying here at the hotel tonight, though, aren’t you? Shouldn’t you check in?”

“Probably so! And we’ll look out for you too, Sonia. If we hear anything about any hero or whatnot, we’ll tell you!”

She heads out while the two of them make their way to the main desk, where there seems to be a bit of a commotion going on. There’s a group of punks in matching outfits, sort of heckling the guy at the desk. Gloria goes up to try and move past them, and they immediately set their sights on her.

“Team Yell is here to help, after all! You’re in for a battle if you wanna stop us!” one of them says to her. She has no idea what it is that they’re on about, but none of them are backing down, and before she knows it, the man who just spoke has brought out a Pokeball. So, it looks like she really is in for a battle!

“Team Yell: Didn’t we tell you, mate? You get in our way and you’re in for a battle!”

“Then let’s do it,” she replies, sounding a lot more composed than she feels.

“Team Yell’s all about helpin’...helpin’ one very special trainer win the gym challenge, that is!” he says. “We wanna make sure she gets cheered on nice and proper, and now you’re gonna help us make some noise!”

The battle is honestly an easy one, with Gloria winning a decisive victory, but he is not the only one who wants to challenge her, and soon enough, another of his friends steps forward. She feels bad about making such a ruckus in the hotel lobby, but when they keep coming at her like this, she doesn’t have much choice. After another quick victory, Hop speaks up from behind her.

“I wasn’t expecting checking in would be such a big fuss, Gloria! What’s going on? Trying to sneak in some battles without me?” he says. “Don’t think you can get ahead of me that easily. I need to get some training in, so I’m joining!” Turning to the group, he says, “I’m Hop, one of this year’s gym challengers! And the one who’s gonna be the next champion! Now let’s have us a nice two-on-two!”

The remaining two in the group join forces then, and she and Hop battle side by side. It’s rather different from battling against him, but she has at least had enough of a chance to learn his style that she thinks the two of them do pretty well together. Just as they manage to defeat these two punks, a girl approaches them.

“What are you lot doin’ here?” she asks. From her outfit to her style of speech, it seems pretty clear that she’s with them somehow, though she does not wear the exact same thing that they do. Gloria is pretty sure she recognizes her face from one of the banners that one of her opponents was holding.

“Marnie?! N-n-nothin’...we was just…”

“I know you all are terribly curious ‘bout the other gym challengers, but you gotta show a bit of restraint,” she says, looking tired. She turns to Hop and Gloria and says, “Sorry ‘bout them. They’re just a bunch of my fans. Call themselves Team Yell and follow me around, cheerin’ for me. I think they’ve let it go to their heads a bit…”

“No, it’s fine,” Gloria says, at the same time that Hop says, “It was great for some extra training!”

“Come on, you lot! Back home with you, now!” Marnie says to her group, then focuses back on them. “They’re just so caught up with wantin’ to support me and all that, they tend to get a bit shirty with other gym challengers. Sorry if they caused you any trouble.”

“So you’re a gym challenger too? Team Yell, was it? Pretty impressive that you already have a set of fans to call your own,” Hop says.

Marnie mumbles something about it not being that big of a deal, then makes her excuses and goes on her way. The whole time, Gloria has thought something seemed familiar about Team Yell, but by the time they’re all gone, she still hasn’t been able to put her finger on it. Before she can ask Hop his opinion on it, he says that he’s pretty tired himself, and that they should probably get up to their rooms.

It’s her first time staying in a big hotel like this, and it’s hard for her to get to sleep. She thinks about Marnie, who already has fans of her own, and wonders what it’s like, doing the gym challenge with that many people rooting for her. Meanwhile she’s just from little Postwick, and her main motivation is a hopeless crush she’s had on Leon since she was a little kid.

Even though Leon is the champion and at the center of the whole gym challenge, this is all so much bigger than him, and she begins to wonder if she really belongs out here, doing all of this. But it’s too late to have second thoughts now; she’s already registered in the challenge, and tomorrow, she’s going to be introduced to the world and really get started.

Though getting to sleep is hard, she sleeps soundly through the night, exhausted from her long day traveling.


	8. Chapter 8

Gloria is up early the next morning, packing up so that she can check out of the hotel and head to the stadium. Hop is waiting for her in the lobby, where he says, “Morning! So this is it...now my legend really begins!”

“Your legend sure has begun a lot by now,” she replies. “How many times are you going to say that?”

“You can’t blame me for getting excited!” he retorts, which doesn’t really answer her question, nor does it solidify any of his beginnings as the true beginning to his “legend.” He ignores her teasing as they walk to the desk together, taking turns checking out and turning in their room keys. They have the rooms reserved for one more night, but both she and Hop will not be wasting a single second getting started, even if it is tempting to stay in the nice hotel for as long as possible.

“Watch out, Gloria! I’ll beat you to Motostoke Stadium!” Hop says, as soon as she is done checking out. This time, she was expecting him to turn it into a race, and she takes off at the same time as he does, the two of them running back to the stadium. He is still a little bit faster than her, but they get there at nearly the same time, and are both told where to go to change. Their new uniforms will be waiting there for them, just the size they requested.

Gloria feels weird, looking at herself in her challenger uniform. It is the same as everyone else’s, the same as it has been for years and years. Ten years ago, Leon wore a uniform just like this one, and so did Sonia. Now, it’s finally her turn, and seeing herself in the mirror makes it feel a little more real.

~X~

The ceremony itself is something else entirely. After watching it on TV, year after year, she didn’t think much of it, and it goes the same as it always does, but being out there in the middle of it all, knowing that at that moment, anyone could be looking at her, makes it a very different experience. The gym leaders are introduced, only seven of them for some reason, and Leon and the chairman are both there to make speeches, and then it is over.

Once again, she is reminded of how much bigger than Leon all of this is, but still he stands at the center of it all, undaunted. He is the final goal for everyone, but he remains confident and excited for the battles to come, the battles that he is sure he will still win. Gloria wonders if she will be the one to face him at the end, and, if she is, if she will even be able to face him. Will he finally notice her if it is standing across the field from him? If she becomes his equal, then will she have more of a chance with him?

She needs to stop thinking silly things like that.

When it’s over and they are all dismissed, she remains numb as she changes back into her normal clothes, and goes back out to meet Hop. He is just as excited as she is, and starts talking immediately, unable to contain his excitement anymore. She is certain that he will be on about this for days on end, just as long as he can find somebody to listen to him.

“Standing there on the pitch...in the stadium...in front of everyone! There’s really no words for it, but...I can barely contain myself! My heart’s racing!” And he goes on like that for some time, until they’re interrupted, and Gloria’s heart thumps in her chest when she turns around to see Leon.

“You’d made it at last, Hop. And you too, Gloria!” he says, and he isn’t alone. The chairman is standing beside him, giving them both a smile. Chairman Rose is a big deal, and meeting him personally is as well, but still, she is more excited to be congratulated by Leon.

“So you’re the two trainers our champion endorsed himself! Welcome, and it’s a delight to meet you! I’m Rose, of course,” he says, looking them both over. “Oh, and what’s this? I see you both already possess Dynamax Bands! How wonderful! It seems the two of you have been led here by the guiding light of the wishing stars. By the way, it was my wonderful company that invented those Dynamax bands, you know!”

Everything that he says sounds crisp and precise, like he’s had the benefit of rehearsing before every conversation. He doesn’t give any of them a chance to weigh in before he continues. “I daresay this year’s gym challenge is looking to be an absolute blast! Very good, very good indeed! That means the whole Galar region is in for some excitement! The gym challenge is an excellent opportunity to show off your Dynamax Pokemon. Now, I’m terribly sorry, but there is some urgent business I need to attend to, so I must be on my way. The best of luck to both of you!”

He jumps from one topic to the next without pause, and then he’s done, saying goodbye and taking his leave, just like that. Neither Hop nor Gloria actually got a chance to say anything to him, and once he is out of earshot, Leon laughs and says, “He almost never shuts up once he gets going. All you can really do is nod and let him do his thing. Well, at least he’s in high spirits!”

After they’ve laughed a bit more, he continues, “Now, listen closely, you two. You’ve both only just started on your path as trainers. If you want to win, you need to do more than just train your Pokemon. You need to train yourselves, too.”

Gloria would spend all the time in the world listening to Leon’s advice if she could, but Hop speaks up first. “Let’s do it, Gloria! The first gym is in Turrfield! To get there, we need to head to route 3!”

He wants to head straight out, but Gloria decides to stock up on supplies and get her first official league card printed at the Pokemon Center before she leaves. She expects Hop to be long gone by the time she leaves town, but instead, he is waiting for her just outside of town, an eager expression on his face.

“There you are! I’ve been waiting!” he says. “Let’s have a battle, you and me. We’ll get in a bit of training!”

“Alright, you’re on!” she replies, feeling more excited than nervous at the prospect of battling him. She isn’t sure if it’s just because she is getting used to it, or because they don’t have an audience, but either way, she is ready.

“I knew you’d be up for it! We’ve got to stay keener than anyone else if we want to steal the spotlight from our rivals!”

The two of them battle, both of their teams having grown and changed a bit since the last time they took each other on. Gloria is starting to get a feel for his strategy, having an even easier time of it than before. Just like all of their previous battles, she is able to make it out with a victory, much to Hop’s disappointment. Still, he tries to hide his disappointment as he congratulates her on her win. He is not a sore loser, she can at least say that much for him.

“I’ll even give you one of my league cards! That’s how good I think you did in that battle!” he says, pulling a card out to give to her. She isn’t sure when he had time to get it printed, but she is excited nonetheless, trading him one of hers in return.

“Can you believe it?” she asks. “We have our very own cards!”

“I know, it’s amazing! Pretty soon, that’s going to be a rare collectible, so take good care of it, you hear?”

“I don’t know,” she replies, “I think mine might end up a little more valuable.”

“Very funny, you,” he says, shaking his head with a grin, before getting serious again. “Our gym challenge starts right now- from here in Motostoke! Although the first gym leader we’ll have to challenge is in a town way far off from here. Still, you’d better believe I’m going to keep one winning my way to that championship match!”

Now he takes off without her, finally heading off to the next town, and calling out without a hint of shame, “Hello, Galar! Meet your next Champion!”

If she were to start running now, she could probably catch up to him eventually, and once he got tired of running, they could take their journey at the same pace, but she decides to take things at her own pace, beginning her walk on her own. Her first gym battle is on the other side of this leg of her journey, and she hopes that the battles that she has had thus far have prepared her enough for what lies ahead.


	9. Chapter 9

As luck would have it, Gloria hasn’t been walking for very long when she comes across Sonia on the road to Turrfield.

“Heya, gym challenger! You looked real ace out there during the opening ceremony! Oh, but where’s Hop?” she asks.

“He went on ahead,” Gloria replies. “He should have passed you at some point, but maybe he was going too fast to notice?”

Sonia laughs at her joke and says, “He can’t sit still at all, can he? Guess he really wants to catch up to his brother.” She turns and points off the path into the distance, changing the subject. “You see that building over there? It’s a company owned by Chairman Rose. Just past route 3, there’s a mine where they dig up ore. That building over there processes it into energy.”

“Oh, yeah?” she asks, looking to where Sonia points, not quite sure why she’s sharing this with her. Just like how Hop wants to play the teacher when it comes to showing her how to be a trainer, Sonia seems to like to teach people about any and everything that comes to her mind. She probably will be a good successor to her grandmother someday.

“In other words, the chairman is responsible for providing the Galar region with its energy too. Can’t say I really get him, but the chairman seems like a pretty brilliant guy, right? Plus, he’s always taken such good care of Leon…” Though her face remains the same, something shifts in Sonia’s tone, and Gloria wonders if she might not feel a little bitter about that.

After all, they were rivals back then, and yet Leon is the only one anyone remembers. He definitely deserves his title, and is amazing at what he does regardless of who took an interest in him, but it must be hard not to wonder what would have happened if Sonia had caught his eye as well. Naturally, Gloria does not feel like she knows her well enough to touch on a subject like that, nor does she think she would be able to even if they were close friends.

Now seems like as good a time as any to go their separate ways, so Gloria says goodbye and gets back on the road, heading for the mines that Hop told her about. She should be able to find the town on the other side, so she keeps heading in that direction. When it starts to get dark, she sets up camp for the night, and is so tired that sleep finds her easily despite how unused to camping she is. The next morning, she sets out early, continuing the same way, and soon entering the mines.

“Coming this way?” a voice calls out, and Gloria looks forward, surprised to see someone she recognizes. It’s the boy who was somewhat rude to them at registration. “I’d advise against it. Any trainer with a wishing star is in for a beating from me and my Pokemon!”

Is that his way of saying that he’s challenging her to a battle? He seems awfully full of himself, and Gloria just steps closer, watching the way he smirks like he has already assured his own victory.

“You. You’re the gym challenger endorsed by the champion, aren’t you?” he asks, but he doesn’t let her answer. “You are aware that the chairman is more important than the champion, right? I was chosen by the chairman himself, so that makes me more amazing than you! I suppose I should prove beyond doubt just how pathetic you are and how strong I am.”

“Are you asking for a battle?”

“I thought that much would be obvious,” he says. “Do you accept?”

Gloria scoffs, reaching for a Pokeball. “I thought that much would be obvious,” she mimics.

“You won’t be so smug when this is over,” the boy replies.

He isn’t kidding about how tough he is; it’s like he’s in an entirely different league from the trainers she has battled up until now. The battle drags on, a difficult one for her, but she doesn’t give up, and by the end, only one of her Pokemon faints to his team, and then she is the clear winner.

“Well, that was unexpected. I suppose you’re more able than I thought,” he says, looking a bit less smug. Gloria feels satisfied with herself. “Naturally, I’ll remember your battle style and strategies now. I’m sure to easily defeat you when we face each other in an official match. Now that we've established that, I won't waste any more time on you. I’ve already gathered every wishing star in the area.”

With that, he leaves without waiting for anything she might have to say. Gloria lingers behind for a bit, not wanting to follow too close behind him. He definitely isn’t the most pleasant of people, and she doesn’t like the way he talks about Leon’s endorsement, like it means less than nothing because it doesn’t come from the chairman. Like he’s already so certain that he’ll be the next champion that nothing Leon does matters anymore.

Once she has given him some time for a head start, she starts back on her journey, soon reaching the end of the mine. Not far beyond that is Turffield, and she steps into town, ready to search for the Pokemon Center, and then the gym. 

“Wooloo! Where do you think you’re going?”

She turns in the direction of the voice to see a Wooloo barreling right toward her. The next thing Gloria knows, she’s on the ground, looking up at one of the gym leaders, the first one that she will have to battle in her challenge.

“My...are you okay?” asks Milo, as he offers a hand to help her up. “You took that tackle head on...Hm? Oh, you must be one of those gym challengers, right?”

“Yes, I am,” she says, as she dusts herself off. “And don’t worry about me, I’m pretty used to unruly Wooloo.”

“Ah, I thought so,” he says. “About you being a gym challenger, I mean. I thought I saw you at the opening ceremony!” After Milo has gotten his Wooloo to follow along, he tells Gloria to make sure she stops by the gym, and heads back that way.

After a quick stop at the Pokemon Center, Gloria heads in the direction that Milo did, and soon finds the gym stadium, with Hop standing right out in front. He waves her over when he notices her and says, “Look! Just take a look at that, Gloria! That’s Turrfield stadium down there! The gym leader just returned, too. The place is jam-packed with challengers. It’ll be ages before our turn comes up.”

“Oh, yeah, I just saw him heading back not long ago. I guess everyone headed straight here, huh?” It’s hard to imagine anyone managing to beat Hop to town.

“Oh...but Sonia was looking for you, Gloria. She wanted to ask you about something,” he says. Is Sonia just following the same path that they are? “She tried asking me, but I had no idea. She’s up on that what’s-her-face hill. You know the one.”

Gloria squints at him. “That’s not very specific at all, Hop.”

“What? You don’t know the hill? Well, have a look on your map, if you’re not sure!” he retorts.

Gloria is already preparing to do that when she hears the little yip coming from the ground. She and Hop look down to see a Yamper, and Hop nods, like this solves all of her problems. “Oh! If it isn’t Sonia’s Yamper! He’s a good boy, he’ll show you.”

Ordinarily, she might not just follow along without consulting her map, but she remembers Leon talking about Yamper guiding him in his childhood, and decides to go along with it for now. As always, she manages to relate these little things back to Leon, her mind wandering to him as she follows Yamper up the hill, looking out for Sonia along the way.

She and Sonia spot each other, and Sonia calls out to them. “Thanks, Yamper! And it’s good to see you again, Gloria!”

“Hop said you were looking for me?”

“I had you come cos I wanted to hear what you thought.” She gestures out, and Gloria gets a good look at a hill in the distance, a pattern made into it that looks like some sort of large creature in attack. In fact, she knows exactly what it looks like. “So, that geoglyph...what do you think of it?”

“It looks a lot like Dynamaxing,” she replies, and Sonia nods.

“Seems likely. It certainly looks like a gigantic Pokemon. I suppose people three thousand years ago could’ve just imagined this, but it looks too similar to Dynamax. It can’t just be coincidence,” she says. “A long time ago...a great black storm covered the Galar region. Giant Pokemon ran rampant...but what was that black storm they called ‘the Darkest Day’? What connection does it have to Dynamax? Guess I’m the lucky lady who’ll be looking into that. Gran sure gives me a lot to do.”

Sonia sighs, hanging her head for a moment, and Gloria wonders if she should say something to comfort or encourage her, but before she can, Sonia has perked up again. “Thanks for your thoughts on the matter! As thanks, I’ll give you a league card. This should come in handy!”

The card that she gives her is Milo’s, and she sends Gloria off with some encouragement. She knows that there will still probably be a bit of a wait before she can challenge Milo, so she decides to go back to the Pokemon Center to rest up for a bit, and think about her strategy for the next battle. Sobble will not be the best pick for it, so she will have to approach this with caution.

After waiting around for a little while, she decides to wait outside the stadium for Hop. Once he comes out, she will go in to register for her turn, she decides. Fortunately, she does not have that long of a wait before he comes out, beaming enough that she can guess what he is going to say before he says it.

Pulling out his badge, he says, “Take a look at this, Gloria! The grass gym badge! I got it in one try!”

“That’s amazing, Hop!” she replies, looking the badge over with a hint of envy. It’s a real gym badge, his very first, and she hopes that she will have her own to boast about soon enough.

“I reckon I’m just about the greatest when it comes to wrangling Wooloo,” he continues. “I’ve had plenty of practice at it, after all! But I’m sure you can win this one, too. After all, you are my rival!”

“You’re not going to be ahead of me for long,” she replies. She wants to ask him what he means about the Wooloo wrangling, but decides to just see for herself. “I’m heading on in now.”

“Alright, best of luck! And look forward to testing our strength once you’ve got your own badge!”

Hop waves her off, and Gloria enters the stadium, heading for registration, and then to change into her uniform. There is only one other person ahead of her right now, the initial rush already mostly through, and she does not have a very long wait before it is her turn.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys, just a small announcement, going back to the every other week schedule right now due to a huge pile up of health issues

Once she is changed and ready to begin her challenge, Gloria is ushered into the first part of the gym. There, just as Hop implied, she is supposed to help wrangle Wooloo until she can get them all into one place. Along the way, there are other gym trainers that present an obstacle for her, as well as a Yamper that will startle the Wooloo if it gets too close.

Though she has about as much experience with the wrangling as Hop does, she sometimes runs into those obstacles that make it a little bit more difficult for her. Eventually, she has no choice but to battle one of the trainers, keeping her Sobble out of things for now. He is at a disadvantage here, and she would rather make it through the battles ahead without having to use him, if necessary.

Though he is at a decent level now, and might be able to hold his own, she will avoid that as much as possible. Once the trainer is defeated, they call off the Yamper, making it easier for her to get the flock of Wooloo to the next point. The next area is similar to the first, and this time, Gloria decides to go straight for the trainer to battle.

As she expected, having them out of the way means that it is a bit easier to get all the Wooloo to their goal. Another gate soon opens up, bringing her to the next area, where she follows the same strategy, and soon enough, she has made her way through that one as well, clearing the gym challenge. Now, it’s time for her to face off in her actual gym battle, and she is sent to the hallway that leads to the stadium.

She can hear the roar of the crowd, waiting for her while she makes sure that she has her team healed up for the battle. Taking a deep breath, she stands up straight, and takes the remaining steps forward, out onto the field. It’s a bit smaller than Motostoke, but still recognizable as a gym stadium, and across from her, Milo has entered as well, the two walking toward each other.

Gloria has seen this part on TV so many times, and now she is the one out there, approaching the gym leader to shake his hand, before go back to their place to send out their Pokemon. Her first gym battle has begun.

Milo only has two Pokemon, and with a team she has tried to work on to be able to stand up against him, his first does not take much effort. In the end, she can’t resist letting Sobble out, because when Milo brings out his last Pokemon, he decides to Dynamax. This will be her first time Dynamaxing, and she wants her first Pokemon to get that chance.

It is impossible for her to describe how it feels, watching her Sobble grow to unbelievable size, and to stand on the other side of the battlefield from Milo and his massive Eldegoss. From that point, on the battle is perhaps more difficult than it needs to be, but it is worth it to Gloria, to see the way Sobble battles while massive.

And still, the disadvantage is not enough to lose her this fight. It is down to the wire, but she still has other Pokemon if worse comes to worse, and then Sobble lands one last critical hit, fainting Milo’s Pokemon. Her first gym battle is done and won.

And then, before Milo can give her her gym badge, right in front of everyone in the stadium, her Sobble looks up at her, proud as can be, and evolves. The crowd goes absolutely wild for her new Drizzile, and Milo has one more thing to congratulate her on when he hands over the badge. All the while, Gloria can’t help her mind wandering to stupid places, as she wonders if Leon watched her battle.

Of course, he is probably too busy to tune into that. If he were going to watch anyone’s, it would be Hop’s, and  _ maybe _ hers because he endorsed her as well, but it’s not as if they told him they would be going for it- unless Hop did- and even so, it wouldn’t surprise her if he turned out to be too busy even to watch Hop. Even so, she hopes that if he did watch, that he was impressed with her.

She gets changed back into her street clothes after that, still riding the high as she exits the stadium. Gloria wants to get back on the road as soon as possible, to head to her next goal. Hulbury is next on her trip, and if she gets a good start before sun sets, she should be able to get there with plenty of time for a battle tomorrow.

She stops by the Pokecenter on her way, making sure that her team is good to go, and stocking up on more supplies, before checking her map and heading towards Hulbury. On the way, she should make sure to get in as much training as she can, and start thinking about her next strategy.

Hop is waiting for her on the outskirts of town, grinning when he sees her approach. “There you are, Gloria! I’m warning you, though. Any closer than that and we’re going to have to have a battle, you and me!”

Wasting no time, Gloria charges ahead to accept his challenge, and by the time she reaches him, they are both laughing. He says, “I warned you! We’re both gym challengers who’ve earned ourselves a Grass Badge. This is the perfect training!”

“Then let’s see what you can do!” she replies, eager to get started.

Much like their previous battles, she finds that she has gotten even more used to his strategy, and does not struggle as much against him. Hop beams when he sends out the Pokemon that Leon gave him, and Gloria can see now that she is not the only one who had a Pokemon evolve. His Scorbunny is a Raboot now, which makes her feel even more proud to show off her new Drizzile.

That fight is over as quickly as it begins, just as it always is, and soon enough, it’s all over, leaving Gloria with another victory under her belt, and leaving Hop groaning. “You’ve gotten stronger, Gloria. Seems like I’ve got to train even harder from now on.”

“I’ll be training hard too,” she replies. “I won’t make catching up easy!”

“And I wouldn’t want you too!” he says, brightening again. With that, they say their goodbyes and head off, with Hop once again going so fast that she decides not to try and match his pace.

Eventually, she sets up camp for the night, checking her map again. It won’t be long, once she wakes up, and then she can take on Nessa, the next gym leader.

~X~

She gets an early start the next day, getting some training in along the way, and in a few hours, she has reached the city of Hulbury. Not far beyond the Pokemon Center, there is a bit of a commotion going on. There is a small crowd, and in that small crowd, she recognizes the boy she battled in the mines, the chairman, and his secretary. It looks like Rose might have tried some sort of disguise, but he’s far too recognizable to actually work.

As she gets closer, she can hear the secretary speaking to the others. “Our sincerest apologies! The chairman is quite busy at the moment. Everyone, please disperse! Please leave now!”

“Okay, see you later, chairman!” one person says, and they wave as the group begins to quickly disperse.

“No need to rush off! I can still do more autographs! I’ll even give you my Pokemon league card!” Rose says, but they’ve already left. Sighing, he turns back to his secretary. “We need the support of our fans to keep doing what we’re doing. Chasing them off like that...aren’t you being a bit too harsh, Oleana?”

“Fans are very important, of course,” Oleana replies. “That’s why you need to keep doing your work- for their sake.”

The boy from the mines is the only one to have stayed behind, and he steps closer now. “I promise to do everything in my power to assist you too, Chairman.”

“Oh, and you were…?” Rose asks, and Gloria reflexively winces.

The boy does not seem to take it to heart, however, and simply says, “Bede, sir.”

“That’s right! Bede! I daresay I’m impressed how far you’ve come since I gave you that Pokemon all those years ago. Will you be the one to win the gym challenge? Or perhaps it will be one of the trainers endorsed by the champion,” says Rose.

“I will prove your faith in me was well placed, Chairman. I won’t lose to anyone!” Bede insists. “Anyway, I will be on my way now.”

He takes his leave then, and Gloria realizes that she has simply hung back to eavesdrop. She knew better than to get close when she saw Bede, and now she wants to wait for the other two to get on their way. However, Rose turns to her as if he already knew she was there and waves her over, “Ah, your name was...Gloria, right? We were just talking about you!”

Without any other choice, she goes over to join Rose and Oleana. “Hello, sir.”

“I admit I’m curious about Leon’s reasons for endorsing you,” he muses. “Ah! I just had a good idea, as I tend to do! You’re going to face gym leader Nessa soon, yes? If you get a gym badge from her, I’ll hold a celebration. I’d like to get to know you a little better, after all!”

Gloria doesn’t know what to say to that, but before she can think of anything, Oleana steps in. “Chairman, we should really be going…”

“You’re right, you’re right,” he says. “Please, do your best, for the sake of Galar’s future!” With that, he leaves, without explaining himself any further, though Oleana hangs back.

“The chairman will be heading to this town’s seafood restaurant. Win the gym badge and join him there. Do not keep him waiting,” she says curtly. And, just like Chairman Rose, she turns abruptly to leave, without another word.

So, Gloria is supposed to win against Nessa, and do so quickly, so that she can make it to the restaurant to have dinner with the chairman, without keeping him waiting for too long. Quite a bit of pressure to deal with, and her only option is to put it from her mind and try to focus on the battle at hand.


	11. Chapter 11

The challenge that Gloria has to complete in this gym involves a puzzle of sorts, where she has her path blocked by torrents of water. If she can figure out which buttons to push to turn the water off and on, she can slowly make her way through to get to the end of the puzzle. Along the way, of course, there are trainers for her to battle, testing her skill along the way, but Gloria doesn’t find them to be too terribly challenging.

She keeps her team well healed up along the way, until she is finally able to make it to the end of the puzzle, and then it is time to make her way onto the pitch, where Nessa is waiting for her.

All the while, Gloria wonders if Chairman Rose would really wait for her through all of this. By her count, it has been at least an hour, if not even longer, and she still has the main battle to get through. Oleana had rushed her along, but she’s sure that he will get impatient or have other business to attend to before she can actually win this. If he doesn’t, that is another matter entirely, and she isn’t sure what she should say or how she should act while sharing a meal with him.

The battle itself probably takes her at least another hour, but by the end of it is, she wins and obtains her second gym badge. Yet again, the feeling of victory in front of such a large crowd is amazing, and knowing that everyone there is cheering for her, when most of them had started out cheering for Nessa, is almost impossible to believe. Is this how Leon felt when he was still a kid? She can understand easily why he would leave home without a second thought now.

The excitement is so great that she nearly forgets the chairman altogether, until she is changing out of her uniform. Maybe he has forgotten all about it by now, but she should at least stop by to check, just in case. It would be rude otherwise, on the off chance that he did decide to stick around, and not only would that look bad on her, but he might even mention it to Leon, and Leon would get mad…

But as it turns out, she doesn’t have to worry about finding her way to the restaurant, because when she leaves the stadium, Oleana is waiting for her.

“Do not keep the chairman waiting. Head to the seafood restaurant. Chairman Rose is the kind of man who gets downhearted if he doesn’t take care of the things he needs to right away.” After saying all of this, she turns abruptly and leaves, giving Gloria no chance to say anything.

It seems an awfully weird thing to say, especially since he has apparently waited for her all day, and possibly had Oleana waiting outside for her the entire time. It is hard to tell if that is what happened, or if Oleana returned just in the time for the match to end, but from what little Gloria knows about the secretary, neither option would honestly surprise her.

She follows in the direction that Oleana went, and soon finds the restaurant. When she goes inside, it isn’t hard to spot the table that the chairman is at, with Oleana standing behind his seat, but one of the seats across from him is already occupied. Not only that, but it’s Sonia, of all people! Gloria is beginning to lose track of the times she has bumped into the young woman just since leaving home.

Rose spots her and waves her over, saying, “Gloria! Let’s celebrate your recent victory!”

Sonia looks up as she approaches. “Oh? You were invited too?”

“You two know each other? That’s great! Come now, please be seated,” he says, and Gloria does as she is told, taking the seat next to Sonia. He continues on, making pleasant conversation. “Hulbury is a seafood town. Naturally, if one is going to eat here, the obvious choice is the local cuisine! Everything on the menu is delicious.”

Gloria picks up the menu left in front of her to study it. The others must have already ordered, but a waiter is there quickly to take her order, promising that everything will come out together, and soon. Sharing a table with Chairman Rose must have its benefits, she realizes.

“By the way, how is Professor Magnolia getting on?” he asks Sonia. “I’m quite indebted to her, you know. She was the one who figured out how to unleash the power of wishing stars to Dynamax Pokemon. We would never have been able to create Dynamax bands without her.”

Sonia sighs. “She was saying there’s still so much we don’t know about Dynamaxing. It’s causing her some worry. She even made me take a power spot detector with me when I started traveling.”

“A power spot detector! That’s the device that allowed me to discover the power spots. Locations that emit Galar particles and allow Pokemon to Dynamax,” he says, explaining things that Gloria is pretty sure Sonia would have already known, unless he’s explaining it for her benefit. After all, he doesn’t know how well she knows Sonia and the professor.

“I don’t like hearing that Professor Magnolia is so worried, though. If only there were something I could do…” he muses, thinking it over for a moment. “Sonia, it may be good for you to visit the vault in Hammerlocke. I believe the key to unlocking the secrets of the Dynamax phenomenon lies in the history preserved there.”

“I was honestly thinking of heading there myself,” Sonia replies, and soon enough, the two of them are in a discussion that Gloria can hardly keep up with, about history and research, and various things of that nature.

The food comes and they continue their conversation while they eat, with Gloria feeling rather awkward all the while. She has nothing to contribute to the conversation, but she should probably listen and try to learn something from it. Even so, she barely understands a word of it and can barely feign interest with it, and finds herself spacing out quite a bit until the meal is mostly done and Oleana replies to something that he has said.

“Understood, Chairman. I will arrange a meeting with Miss Sonia. However, I believe it is also time we get going, Chairman.” Secretly, Gloria is relieved that this is nearly over.

On the other hand, Rose seems a bit disappointed. “Hm? But I’ve hardly had a chance to speak with Gloria,” he protests, before sighing. “ It’s regrettable, but I suppose it can’t be helped. If something needs to get done, there’s no time like the present, after all! In any case, I bid you all farewell!”

He and Oleana take their leave then, after he leaves more than enough money to cover the bill and a very substantial tip. Now she is left alone with Sonia, which is still awkward for her, but definitely preferable to having all three of them there, Rose prattling on about things and Oleana with that  _ look _ on her face.

“Does he think he’s doing me a favor?” Sonia sighs, finally allowing herself to relax now that they are alone. “He’s right that the vault would be a good place to look for info on the legends, but…” She trails off, before changing the subject. “You got the water badge, yeah?”

“Yeah, just earlier today,” Gloria replies. “He told me to come here after I’d won.”

“Well, good job! Defeating Nessa’s no small feat. Actually, she’s a good friend of mine. I should probably drop in to see her while I’m in town.”

With her excuse to leave, Sonia says goodbye, and Gloria has no more reason to hang around here. She should probably go to the Pokemon Center, since Oleana rushed her here straight after her battle, and get ready to hit the road again. She’s going to have to backtrack a bit, because her next gym battle will be at the stadium where everything started, back in Motostoke.

After a visit to the Center, she checks her map and prepares to head out of town, only to hear someone calling out to her.

“Gloria!” Hop says, waving as he rushes up to her. Judging by his smile, he must have already gotten his badge, and she almost wishes she had run into him instead of the chairman, since they were in town at the same time.

“Hey, Hop,” she says. “You about to head out?”

“Sure am, mate!” he replies. “We’ve both got the grass badge and the water badge! In that case, we’re both headed for Motostoke and the fire gym leader, Kabu! How about I share with you a little tip about that leader Kabu?”

It’s hard for her not to laugh at the way he delivers this line, playing the mentor as he always does. “Alright, what’s the big secret?”

“From what I heard, he’s holed up now in the mines, undergoing some special training. If he’s there, we can’t take him on in Motostoke, even if we zip right over there. So I say we head over to the mines ourselves! Let’s go see what all the fuss is about!” he declares.

Of course, he wants to make this a race, and of course, he doesn’t give her a fair start, and like always, Gloria just lets him do his thing. She will catch up to him eventually, but better not to rush herself too much. Either way, she is going to make it to the mines, and probably even Motostoke, by nightfall, and then she should have enough money to get a room for the night, instead of camping out.

~X~

When she reaches the mines, she is only inside for a brief time before she sees Bede, just like the last mine she was in. He notices her as soon as she notices him, and makes a face at her.

“You again...I’d feel sorry for my Pokemon if I made them take part in a battle against low-level opponents. I’m not in the mood to deal with weaklings right now,” he says. She opens her mouth to protest, but then he cuts her off. “Then again, I suppose it’s a form of mercy to crush weak opponents early on. If you’re under the misguided impression that you’re stronger than me, then surely you would be up for a Pokemon battle.”

Irritated by his words, she says, “So, what, you want to lose to me again?” The arrogance doesn’t exactly suit her, but it’s difficult to keep that in check with someone like him.

“It’s utterly inconceivable that I, the challenger chosen by the chairman, will lose!” he snaps.

But that’s exactly what happens. Just like before, he is a very tough opponent, but just like before, Gloria pulls through anyway, much to Bede’s shock. He does his best to quickly compose himself.

“Ah, pardon me. It seems I must take back my words. You’re not weak- you just lack talent,” he says, dismissing her entirely despite his loss. “Your chances of completing the gym challenge are pretty slim, I must say. Here, I’ll give you this. Something to show you at least tried. Now, where shall I go next to collect wishing stars?”

As he speaks, he hands her his league card, not bothering to ask for hers in return, and already seeming disinterested in the topic at hand. Gloria has half a mind to rip it up right in front of him, but rather than let him get to her, she puts it away with the rest of her cards before continuing on her way, looking for Kabu and looking for Hop. She begins to wonder if she should have come here at all, when there’s a chance he might have already left the mines, but since she is already here, she might as well keep going, and if she doesn’t see him tonight, he’ll surely be at the gym in the morning.

Then Gloria hears a commotion up ahead, and a rather familiar one at that. Following the sounds of the voices, she is already pretty sure what she’s walking into.


	12. Chapter 12

A few members of Team Yell stand in her way, stopping her from progressing further in the cave. Gloria wonders if it is worth it to engage them to try and get through, or if she should just head out and catch a taxi to Motostoke, because she isn’t exactly sure what the point of her and Hop coming here to meet Kabu really was to begin with. Since she hasn’t seen Hop yet, there is no real reason for her to stay and argue with, and end up battling, these thugs, so she really should be on her way.

“Surrounded by adoring fans, eh?” But then she hears Hop’s voice from behind her, and turns around, startled. “You’ll even be showing up Lee pretty soon!”

How on earth did she beat him here when he had such a head start? She wants to ask him if he takes a little too much after his brother, but one of the punks blocking her path speaks to him first. “Oi, jog on, mate! Can’t you see we’re in the middle of a conversation here?”

Hop takes it in stride, replying, “Yeah? And can’t you see that I’m Hop, the trainer who’ll be your next champion?”

“Ooh, so we’ve got a joker here, eh? You’re so funny I forgot to laugh.”

“You think I’m joking? I’ll prove it, then! And I think a battle with you lot would definitely end with some laughs!” says Hop. “Let’s take ‘em on together, Gloria! You ready, mate?”

Though she had been hoping to avoid an altercation with them, it’s not as if their previous battles had been all that difficult, so she replies, “I’m definitely ready!”

“The two of us were endorsed by the champion himself! We’ll show you just what that means!” says Hop, and then the two of them essentially wipe the cave floor with them, leaving the two punks visibly ashamed of themselves.

The battle is practically over before it even began, and as they hang their heads in defeat, one says, “hat little mug’s the champion’s little brother...guess that’s what you get when your older brother’s not useless.”

It’s a strange remark to make, and Gloria almost wants to ask, but she is certain that it must be something personal, and probably not at all as interesting as it sounds, and she doesn’t want to spend any more time with them than she has to. So she lets the two of them run off with their tails between their legs instead, so that she and Hop can continue on.

“I guess I got a little turned around on my way,” he says, confirming her suspicions. “Still, I’m glad I got here when I did. Couldn’t let you have all the fun without me, after all.”

“So, what was the point in coming out here again?” she asks.

“I told you! We have to find the gym leader! He won’t be at the gym, so we won’t be able to challenge him,” Hop says.

“But it’s already late,” Gloria points out. “Even if we find him and ask him to come back, we won’t be able to register for a battle right now. We’ll just have to come back in the morning either way.”

“I...of course, I already thought of that,” he very clearly lies. “It’s just that it would make for a good impression to meet him first, of course. Now, where could Kabu have gotten off to…”

As they keep going, they soon see him up ahead, a few more members of Team Yell with him, though the battle already seems to be over. Once they are in earshot, they can hear what Kabu is saying.

“Thank you for helping out with my training, Team Yell. But I must say, it’s unforgivable for you to get in the way of a Carkol hard at work!” he scolds them.

One of them protests, “We weren’t gettin’ in its way! We were tryin’ to cheer it on!”

The other one nods in agreement before adding, “Still, you did a number on us in that Pokemon battle, so...it’s time for Team Yell to scarper and give a morale boost elsewhere!”

They turn to leave, pushing past Hop and Gloria without paying them much mind as they do, Kabu sighs. “Cheering is one thing, but one shouldn’t get in the way of honest work!”

“That Kabu...man, he’s wicked!” Hop says, mostly to himself, but it is still enough to turn Kabu’s attention to the two of them.

“Ah, you are the trainers endorsed by Leon! Hop and Gloria, am I right?” he asks. They nod and he says, “I’m just training right up until the last moment so that I can guarantee the perfect match when I face you gym challengers! I specialize in fire type Pokemon, and the water type Pokemon in this mine are the perfect opponents to train against! Regardless, it’s getting late.”

“Yeah, we were just heading into town when we bumped into you,” Hop lies again, trying to act casual in the hopes that Gloria will forget his idea to rush her despite not having enough time for a battle.

“Just go straight once you get out of this mine, and you’ll reach Motostoke. Get a good rest at the hotel, and make sure you’re both in your top condition! We’re going to be on fire tomorrow!” Kabu says. He waves them off as they head in the direction he indicated, and it isn’t long before they reach the end of the mines.

“I remember Lee talking about Kabu. He said that a lot of gym challengers give up because they just can’t beat Kabu. Man, now I’m getting all fired up too!” Hop says. “I’m going to get some more training in tonight, because there’s no way I can sleep like this!”

While he heads off to do his own thing, Gloria continues on her path, ready to get a room for the night so that she can enjoy sleeping in a bed again.

Her heart nearly leaps out of her chest when she spots Leon wandering in town, looking confused as he does. She can’t stop herself from running up to him, not knowing what she is going to say to him, simply wanting to see him since she ran into him.

“Gloria?” he says, turning around to see her. “Oh, it is you!”

“Oh, um, hello,” she says, already wanting to smack herself for acting like this. She was the one who ran right up to him, so she shouldn’t be acting so bashful now, like they just happened to bump into each other and she had no idea he was there.

“What brings you here?” he asks, but corrects himself before she can answer. “Battle tomorrow, yeah? You and Hop are both on your way to challenge Kabu now! The two of you have been blazing your way through the gym challenge, so keep up that momentum!”

“Thank you,” she mumbles, looking down and wishing that she could just speak to him like a normal person. The two of them have known each other for years and years, and she used to speak to him so easily when she was a kid. But now, she finds it hard to be alone with him like this. “I was just heading to the hotel, to stay overnight before my battle tomorrow.”

“Right, well! In that case, since we’re both heading the same way…” His bright smile falters, and then Leon hangs his head. “I’m actually totally lost right now, so if you wouldn’t mind me tagging along with you…”

“Of course not, you can just follow me,” she replies, hoping that he can’t tell how nervous this is making her. Even though she had charged up to him, she was hoping to get rid of him quickly, because she has no idea how to act around him, and does not want to continue making a fool of herself with him. But if he is lost, then she really should help him out, especially when she remembers exactly where the hotel is.

Soon enough, the two of them reach it, and Leon thanks her as they walk up to the front desk. “It was so close, but I bet I would have been wandering for hours without you. I always end up going the complete opposite direction that I need to, you know?”

“Doesn’t GPS help at all?” she asks, and Leon shakes his head sadly.

“I really am completely hopeless, don’t you think?”

“I don’t know about that,” she lies, and then it is Leon’s turn at the desk so their conversation is cut short. He is able to get a room quite easily, being the champion and all, and a small fuss is made over him before Gloria steps up for her turn. Leon waits and watches while she gets a room booked- easy for her because she is a gym challenger, and they have special rates for anyone wearing a challenger band.

“We’re on the same floor,” Leon says, once she steps away from the desk. “Want to go up together?”

It is completely normal for a friend that she has known her whole life, for someone who should be like an older brother to her, to want to walk her to her room. This doesn’t mean anything, and she knows that, but still she is nervous on the elevator, still not sure what to say to him. If Hop were here, then he would fill the silence easily, but then, if Hop were here, she might have left them alone and felt too much like a third wheel during their family time.

Whatever the case, Hop is not here, and Gloria does not know what to say, and Leon does not seem to notice either way, probably happy to have someone with him while he looks for his room. Though the layout of the hotel seems straightforward to her, it would not surprise Gloria at all if he were able to get lost even while already on his floor.

“Are you heading to bed right away?” asks Leon, breaking the silence and startling her out of her thoughts. “Or are you going to stay up a little while?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” she mumbles.

“Well, if you want, I’d love to hear a little about your adventure so far!” he replies. “Since we’re on the same floor, you can visit me for a little while, right?”

There is nothing weird about being in a hotel room with a family friend. There is nothing weird about sitting next to Leon on the hotel bed, trying to recall any stories about her journey that might interest him. There is nothing weird about a man who should be like an older brother to her wanting to spend time getting caught up on things. There is nothing weird about any of this, and she knows for certain that it means nothing to Leon, and definitely nothing in comparison to what it means to her.

But even so, Gloria can hardly keep her thoughts straight, running on autopilot as she recalls some details to share with him. She is probably rambling about things that aren’t important or interesting, but she is doing the best she can while struggling with how difficult it is to speak at all when he is sitting so close to her.

And why is he sitting so close to her to begin with? Is that really necessary? If she moves the wrong way, her arm will brush against his, and then she trails off, stammering while she tries to regain her composure, and Leon smiles at her, and the way he smiles makes it even more difficult for her to remember where she left off.

Until Leon cuts her off in the middle of a story that she is pretty sure wasn’t all that interesting or important to begin with, looking down at her and smiling gently. “Gloria, don’t you think it’s getting a little late? You should probably head back to your room now, before...well, before it gets any later.”

“I...alright,” she says with a nod, knowing that he’s right. She shouldn’t stay, and she shouldn’t keep boring him with her stories. But it is hard to even command her legs to stand when he is smiling at her like that, and she is lucky that she does not start shaking as soon as she is on her feet.

Leon sends her on her way, offering to walk her to her room. But she says, “You might not be able to find your way back if you do,” and he laughs, admitting that it’s true. Really, she just wants to get away from him as quick as possible, before she begins to misinterpret his kindness.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so, from this point on, we should be back to weekly updates! Thank you all for your patience!

It is hard for Gloria to sleep that night, despite how tired she had been while making her way to town. If only she hadn’t seen Leon...and then their conversation in his room, how close he sat to her....even knowing that it should not-  _ does _ not- mean anything, she still has a hard time sleeping, her heart racing whenever she lets her mind wander too much, because it always wanders to him, and where things could have gone.

Most of it is just fantasy, plain and simple self-indulgence that she finds difficult to avoid where Leon is concerned. Perhaps her crush on him had started innocent, when she was a child, but she has grown up now, and she is not immune to the effects of sitting so close to him on a bed, alone in a hotel room. It’s no wonder that she isn’t able to sleep.

The next morning, she nearly sleeps past when she had wanted to get to the stadium, and she scrambles to get ready, hurrying downstairs to check out and go to the gym stadium. When she gets there, Hop is outside, looking so proud of himself that she knows he must not have had any trouble in getting here early.

“Slow moving, aren’t you, Gloria? I’ve already gone and earned my fire badge!” he says. “That man of fire Kabu is just what you’d expect. Nearly got burnt in my battle with him! Even with my strongest team, it was definitely touch-and-go...but I still won in the end! Get a shift on, Gloria! I bet you could beat the man of fire, too!”

Hop doesn’t let her get a word in edgewise before he is already shooing her inside and she says, “Come on, now, I just woke up.”

“Well, who’s fault is that?” he teases. “You can’t spend all day in bed if you want to catch up to me, you know!”

It feels strange to joke back and forth with Hop about this when the only reason she didn’t get adequate sleep was her strange encounter with her older brother. But it really was not as strange as she keeps making it out to be, and Leon didn’t actually keep her up late, her own thoughts did. Either way, she opts not to tell Hop about seeing Leon the night before as she turns to go inside.

Once she is registered and changed, she begins the challenge portion, which is a bit trickier than the others. Rather than battling trainers, she is competing against them to catch wild Pokemon in the gym. At the same time that she is battling the wild Pokemon, so are the trainers, but it’s not a double battle, and they will attack her just as readily as they will attack their true opponent. It is a matter of timing, to make sure that both are dealt with, and the proper amount of points are built up. All in all, frustrating, but it gets a little fun as well. 

Once she has enough points, she moves on to head up to the pitch, where she will face off against Kabu. Being such an experienced trainer, she knows that a battle against him will have its difficulties, but she also has an advantage with her well-trained Drizzile. As long as she pays close attention to Kabu’s strategies, and does not let up or give him any openings, then she will be able to overpower him.

So Gloria follows through with that, giving this battle her all, and using the type advantage that she has well. Though Kabu is a persistent opponent, one by one, she makes her way through his team, until even his final, massive Pokemon stands no chance against her. Just as Hop said she would, she defeats him, and is eager to accept her badge.

Once again, she wonders if Leon thought about their matches at all today, but it feels different now, knowing that she had talked to him about it the night before, and that he had heard directly from her when she would be battling Kabu. It’s not like that would make it any more likely for Leon to have the time to catch the battle, but she is still a little more proud of her performance today, glad that, if Leon did watch, he would have seen just how far she has come.

Though there is no guarantee that Leon watched, Hop makes it clear that he did as soon as she changes and leaves the stadium. “Gloria! I figured if anyone could do it, you would be the one...but still! That match had me right at the edge of my seat!”

“See, and you were worried about me staying in bed all day,” she replies.

“Yeah, yeah. Anyway! Up next is the gym in Stow-on-Side, right? We’ve got to cross through Hammerlocke to get there,” Hop says. “That’ll be plenty cool, we’ll get to see the final gym stadium when we go.”

“Alright, then let’s get a move on,” Gloria agrees.

They turn to take off in that direction, but are stopped by someone calling out to them. Both turn back around to see Kabu approaching them, trying to get them to wait for a moment.

“Huh? You’re the gym leader, but you still came all the way to see us off?” asks Hop, before brightening. “Oh, I bet you can already tell that I’m the one who’ll become the next champion!”

Instead of answering that, Kabu says, “There are many trainers who never manage to gather three gym badges, and they just give up on the gym challenge altogether. So I make a point to see off any trainers who are able to defeat me.”

As he speaks, two others run up to join them, and Gloria is surprised to see that Milo and Nessa are here as well. Panting, Nessa says, “Whew, we made it...thank goodness for flying taxis! Hop, Gloria, congratulations! It’s pretty amazing you two defeated Kabu!”

“Not a lot of gym challengers are able to get a badge from Kabu,” says Milo. “We like to get together to see them off, as a way of showing our support.”

“So, allow me to send you off with a proper, sporty chant!” Kabu says. “Hustle, hustle, hustle, Hop! You can do it, you can do it, Gloria!” He pauses for a moment, looking rather proud, before he continues. “The gym leaders you will face ahead are all tough opponents. But I believe that you will prevail! Believe in your Pokemon and keep pushing on!”

Of course Hop eats all the attention up, making a big show of it as the two of them leave the city. “Thanks, you all! We’re gonna keep winning! We’ve got to if we want a face-off in the champion cup, after all!” he cries, waving as he does. “Come on, Gloria! Let’s head off for Hammerlocke!”

The easiest way to get to Hammerlocke from here is cutting through the Wild Area. The city has a gated entrance there that only gym challengers can access once they have their first three badges. Others must go a longer way, so that makes this the ideal path for the two of them to take. It isn’t long before they have reached the Wild Area, with Hop still riding the high from being cheered on by the gym leaders.

“Hello again, Wild Area, my old friend! I’ve come back to you even stronger than before!” he declares. “Gloria! Hammelocke is up that way, got it? And, ye, you could certainly rush straight there without a single detour...but now that you and I have a few gym badges, we should be able to catch stronger Pokemon! So I know what I’m doing. I’ll be catching myself some amazing Pokemon to fill in the next tale of my legend!”

“So we’ll meet back up later, then?” she asks, but before Hop has a chance to answer, they are interrupted by someone else approaching them.

“Don’t waste your efforts. It’s not like either of you would ever make it through the gym challenge anyway,” says Bede, a cold expression on his face. “The champion really must have been off his rocker to endorse the likes of you. I mean, it seems Hop here can’t even throw a Pokeball properly.”

“Rubbish. More like you don’t know enough to recognize greatness when you see it,” Hop retorts. “My throws are the greatest, and my bro is the finest champion the world has ever seen! I’m not gonna listen to you insulting him!”

“How tiresome...fine. I’ll battle you over there. Maybe that will help you finally understand just how weak you are,” says Bede.

“You’re on then. I know you challenged Gloria to a battle and lost to her. And I’m her greatest rival. In other words...there’s no way you’re beating me!”

“ All this prattle about Gloria and the champion and whatnot...do you not have anything of your own to show?” he asks, sneering at Hop.

Hop scowls at him, before turning back to Gloria. “Hop: I’ll show this wally my real skills in battle! See you later, Gloria! Let’s meet up in Hammerlocke, alright?”

“Alright. Best of luck, Hop!” she calls after him, as the two of them walk off to have their battle. She sets off without him, unable to help worrying about him as she goes. Though Hop is strong in his own right, she has also battled against Bede, and he was a much tougher opponent. Though both have been defeated by her every time, she would have to say that Hop was always easier than Bede.

How is Hop going to stand up against him? Though he tries to take his losses well, it probably helps that he and Gloria have had a playful rivalry for years, and that she has never questioned his skill in battle, not even after winning against him. She tries to take some extra time on her way to Hammerlocke, hoping for Hop to come bounding up to her at any moment, proudly proclaiming his latest victory, but he never shows up. Eventually, she begins to hope to see him sulking soon, and get stuck comforting him, if only he would just show up.

But by the time she reaches the city gates, she still has not so much as heard from Hop. On the other hand, Bede is already there, and soon notices her.

“Oh, it’s you...I doubt Hop will be coming,” he says, far too casually. “It’s only natural. After such a humiliating defeat, there’s no way he could look the champion in the eye. I’m sure he’ll withdraw from the challenge.”

“Hop wouldn’t do that,” she says, her voice coming out less sure than she had intended. “This challenge means the world to him, so he wouldn’t…”

“Then he’s a fool for it. Still, I’m not so sure,” Bede says with a shrug. “Anyway, I have a meeting with the chairman, so I must excuse myself.”

With that, he approaches the gate, where his badges are checked before he is allowed to proceed. He disappears into the city, and Gloria shakes off her concern so that she can follow behind him. As soon as the man at the gate has checked her three badges, she is granted entry to Hammerlocke.


	14. Chapter 14

When Gloria follows Bede into the city, she sees him not far ahead, talking with Chairman Rose and Oleana. They are already within earshot, and she can hear what they are discussing.

“Mr. Chairman! I’ve been collecting both wishing stars and gym badges as fast as I can!” Bede says, sounding entirely different than he did just moments before, when he was talking to Gloria.

“Good work, Bede,” says Oleana. “I’m glad you haven’t forgotten that it was the chairman who endorsed you.”

“If I gather enough wishing stars, that’ll help solve the problem that’s been bothering you, right, Mr. Chairman?” asks Bede.

“Oh, it’s not just about me. It’s for the future of the whole Galar region,” Rose replies. “And we’ll need more than just wishing stars. We need a powerful Pokemon trainer too- someone like the champion.”

“With all due respect, sir, I was able to show Hop, one of the champion-endorsed trainers, just how outclassed he was. I’m sure I’ll be able to defeat the champion. No, I  _ will _ defeat the champion!” he brags. He knows that Gloria is listening, of course.

“That’s the spirit! It takes healthy competition to really keep the gym challenge energized!” Rose encourages him.

“Challenger Bede, there is something I wish to discuss with you. Do you have a moment?” Oleana interrupts, and Bede nods, the two of them walking off together.

Gloria starts to turn to head off as well, feeling awkward for eavesdropping for so long, but Rose stops her. “I hope you were listening, Gloria. As you know, wishing stars are those mysterious stones that are even attached to your Dynamax Bands,” he says.

“Of course,” she says, having a feeling that she is in for another one-sided conversation with the chairman.

“There’s more to wishing stars than just making your Pokemon into giants, though! They hold far more energy than that! If you’re curious, you should head to the stadium,” he continues. “In fact, we should head inside right away! I’ll even give you a little lesson on how the Galar region gets its energy!”

Up ahead is the large, castle-like stadium that houses the Hammerlocke Gym, and Rose gestures for her to follow him inside. Oleana is waiting for him there, with Bede no longer in sight, so they must have finished their discussion already.

“Hammerlocke’s stadium doubles as an energy plant. Now, have a look at my tablet,” Rose says, as he produces his tablet and hands it to her. “I’ve got all the information you need on it.”

Gloria pretends to be interested in the information displayed before her, but a lot of it is still beyond her understanding, or at least too boring to take in all at once. Rose seems proud of himself, though, so she does her best to seem intrigued by it all. When she hands it back, he resumes lecturing.

“Our lives and society require various types of energy sources, such as electricity, natural gas, and water. My associate groups aim to improve everyone’s lives by harnessing the power stored in wishing stars!” There, he pauses. “Oh! It’s time for me to get to work. I should get a move on before Oleana decides to give me another earful. Gloria, I suggest you head over to the vault next.”

She remembers him telling Sonia that she should visit the vault, and them discussing a meeting here in the city. If he is here now, and telling her to visit the vault, then there is a good chance that she will run into Sonia again. Rose gives her directions before heading off with Oleana, and Gloria goes back outside. Not much further down the road, she comes face to face with Leon.

“Gloria! Seems you’re doing well collecting gym badges,” he says with a big smile. If he thinks their last encounter was awkward, or anything worth feeling weird about now, he does nothing to show that. “But Hop...did something happen with him? He was acting really odd when I ran into him. He took one look at me and immediately was like, ‘I’m so sorry, Lee!’ It might be the first time I’ve heard him apologize for anything, and I’ve no idea what it was for! Maybe he’s feeling down because he’s had some hard losses in battle?”

So Leon has already seen Hop, then. Gloria still hasn’t seen him since they split up, and while she is glad that he made it to the city, this conversation does nothing to ease her worries otherwise. He must have let what Bede said get to him, and if that’s the case, she doesn’t know what to do to get him to snap out of it. She is used to Hop bouncing back from everything, and after knowing him her entire life, this is the first time she has ever heard of him taking anything this hard.

“One of the other challengers, Bede...you know, the one endorsed by the chairman?” she says. “The two of them got into it. He’s a really arrogant boy, and kept saying that Hop had nothing to show for himself, and that he was embarrassing you with how bad he was, then they went off to battle. I haven’t seen him since, but I did see Bede, and from what he said, I think Hop took the loss pretty hard.”

“That’s not like him,” Leon says. “I’m sure if he takes some time, he’ll bounce right back.” Even as he says it, he doesn’t sound entirely sure.

“I’m worried about him,” she admits. Though she had initially felt strange talking to Leon after the last time they saw each other, her concern for Hop soon wins out. “I don’t really know what I should do.”

“We’ll have to find some way to snap him out of it. Maybe if both of us try to cheer him up, it’ll work.” Leon looks like he wants to say more on the subject, but is soon distracted. “Blast, and look at the time! Nearly forgot my meeting with the chairman. That Oleana really lets me hear it when I’m late! Now if only I could remember which way to go…”

“It’s just that way,” Gloria says, doing her best to give him directions, surprised that he could still be confused while this close.

“Thanks, you’re a lifesaver. Anyway, I’d say that you should go and say hello to Raihan while you’re here, Gloria. He’s the greatest rival I’ve got and the final hurdle you’ll have to face in the gym challenge. He should still be around the vault, if you hurry,” he says. “And maybe later we can meet up and talk some more? I really don’t want to rush off, but…”

Surprised, she can barely process what he is saying and reply with, “No, I understand, you have work to do.” She knows that he only wants to see her because they are both worried about Hop, but it still feels just as exciting and nerve wracking. “I’ll be in town until tomorrow.”

The last part wasn’t part of her plan; she had intended on getting through here and on the road to Stow-on-Side as quickly as possible, but now, she decides to start on that journey in the morning. Leon nods and tells her where he is staying, saying that she can meet him there that evening, when his work will be over. Gloria supposes that she will get a room for the night as well, or maybe just find somewhere to camp after that.

He hurries off to his meeting and Gloria resumes her trek to the vault, now having been sent there by two different people. All the while, she can’t stop thinking about the fact that she is going to be alone in a hotel room with Leon again, and still has to remind herself that this is just to discuss the trouble that his little brother and her best friend is having.

When she reaches the building she was directed to, she sees Raihan right away and knows that she is in the right place. “Oh! If it isn’t the trainer endorsed by the champion! Let’s see...what was your name again?” Before she can answer, he has his phone out to check something, and then grins at her. “Ah, right! Gloria! And if Leon himself recognized your potential...then I guess you’ll grow into quite the trainer. All the same, though, anyone wanting to challenge the mighty Raihan has to prove they’re up to it by earning seven gym badges first.”

“I wasn’t here to challenge you, actually,” she says. “I was sent here to check out the vault.”

“Ah, so you’re here to see our treasures, are you? Gaining a better understanding of Pokemon by studying history certainly isn’t a bad idea. I like your spirit, kid!” he says, and starts off while gesturing. “Follow me, why don’t you.”

He leads the way up to where the vault is, but heads back down instead of following her inside. At this point, Gloria is not at all surprised that Sonia is there, studying the tapestries on display.

“Oh, you’re here,” she says, briefly turning to Gloria before looking back up. “Brilliant, aren’t they? It’s great that there are still treasured tapestries that can tell us of Galar’s history.” Gesturing from one to the next, she describes them all in turn. “The two youths watching a wishing star. A disaster occurs...the two bewildered youths. The two youths, looking on at the sword and shield that stop the disaster. The youths being crowned. These tapestries tell the story of the creation of a kingdom in Galar.”

Now, she turns around to face Gloria properly, and asks, “Say, young gym challenger, what sticks out to you most about them?”

“I thought there was just one,” Gloria replies, the first thought she’d had upon listening to Sonia’s explanation of what the tapestries were meant to represent. “At the hotel…”

“Bang on! The statue at the hotel in Motostoke only had one hero, no matter how you slice it. But here, we clearly have two youths,” she says. “Was there really only one hero, or were there two? And what even caused the Darkest Day? Thanks for letting me bounce some ideas off you. I think I’ve got some theories now.”

“Oh, uh, you’re welcome,” says Gloria, though she doesn’t feel like she’s done much to actually help. Sonia is always so nice to her, and seems to value her opinion even though she has no idea what the other girl is talking about most of the time.

“I’m going to research the tapestries a tad more, but you have your gym challenge, right? I’m cheering for you! I hope to see more of your wins!” she continues.

With how nice Sonia is being to her, it becomes almost tempting to ask for her advice about some things, since she would be the one most likely to be able to help Gloria with those things. However, it would be impossible to ask her without giving too much away, because if Gloria simply said it was boy trouble, then Sonia would assume she was talking about Hop, which she doesn’t want, but if she had to specify that it was Leon, then that would be even worse.

Though Sonia is a girl too, and is older and perhaps has more experience, she is also way too close with Leon and Hop for Gloria to be able to really talk to her, so she decides against it, and lets it go. On her way out, she passes Raihan again, who stops her with some encouragement.

“The tapestries in the vault depict the heroes of the Galar region’s past. I suppose if we’ve got any modern hero, it’d have to be our champion Leon,” he says. “Listen up, Gloria. Your goal is to defeat the superstar Leon.So go conquer route 6 and train yourself up along the way to Stow-on-Side!”

“I’m already on my way,” she replies, though she is not quite on her way yet. After all, she has plans in the city tonight, so she has to kill some time until then. Tomorrow, though, she can get back on her way.


	15. Chapter 15

With something to focus on, Gloria does not think she will be as nervous being alone with Leon. After all, they are here to discuss Hop, who she is genuinely worried about, and that is far more important than her silly, one sided crush. Leon trusts her with this, because, with how close their families are, they might as well be family themselves.

“So, you think he took a loss particularly hard?” asks Leon, once the conversation is fully underway.

“I haven’t seen him since before he went to battle Bede, but he said we would meet up with me afterwards, and I still haven’t heard much from him,” she says. “Honestly, I was relieved to hear that you had at least seen him in the city, so I know he made it here safe. But other than that, the only thing I heard was what Bede said, which definitely made it seem like he took the loss pretty hard.”

“It just doesn’t seem like Hop. He normally bounces back so quickly. I mean, I watched him lose to you twice, and…” Leon trails off, sighing in frustration. “I don’t know what that kid said to him, but it must have really messed with him. I didn’t know what to say when I saw him, but now I wish I’d known sooner, cos maybe then I could have thought of something really inspiring to get him back on the right track.”

“Do you think he would have listened?” asks Gloria. “While I waited to meet up with you, I did try to call him a few times, but he didn’t answer.” She had tried to text him as well, but all Hop had said was that he was busy, and that they could talk later, so she didn’t press further. Normally, he never went this long without talking to her, so she isn’t sure how to deal with Hop asking for some distance.

“I don’t know. I really don’t know how to deal with any of this. Truth be told, you’ve spent more time with my little bro than I have,” Leon admits, hanging his head. “I know we seem close and all, and I guess we are, but it’s times like now when I realize just how out of the picture I’ve been for the last ten years. He’s grown up without me, and I don’t know him as well as I like to think I do.”

“Lee, you’re the most important person in the world to him. Hop doesn’t think you’ve been absent from his life. You’re all he ever talks about! And I know when we’re watching your matches, he feels close to you. I mean, I can’t speak for him, but that’s what I always thought,” she says. She knows that she has her own bias where Leon is concerned, but it is hard for her to imagine Hop feeling any sort of resentment for his older brother, not with how he talks about him.

“Maybe you’re right about that, but that doesn’t change that I have to ask our next door neighbor how best to talk to him,” he replies with a laugh. “At least I know I can trust you about these things, huh? It’s a good thing you’re around, because you’re turning out to be a real life saver.”

“I don’t know about that…” Gloria mumbles, and suddenly, it feels like that night in Motostoke again, when she becomes suddenly aware of how close he sits to her. She has nothing to be nervous about, and she needs to keep her focus on discussing Hop, but when Leon compliments her like that, she starts to falter again.

“I’m serious. I know I’m older, but I’m relying on you a lot. I guess you’ve changed a lot too,” he muses. “Hop sure grew up without me around to see it, but he wasn’t alone. You grew up right there with him, and you’ve grown up a lot.”

She tries not to look for hidden meanings in his words, tries not to squirm in discomfort as she imagines the ways she could prove to him that she has grown up. This is supposed to be about Hop, not about her and her crush on Leon, yet every time she manages to pull her thoughts away from that, he finds a way to bring it back. He keeps looking over at her, a strange look in his eyes, and she wants to say that he just looks serious because he’s concerned about Hop, but that’s not all there is to it.

She bites her lip, then stops because she doesn’t want him looking at her lips, except she very much wants him looking at her lips. Only now does she realize that she hasn’t said anything to him, but she still can’t think of anything to say to a remark like that, and she can’t get her thoughts straight long enough to figure it out.

“Gloria?” he asks, a slow smile spreading across his face. “Everything alright in there?”

“Sorry,” she mumbles, at least glad that she can say that much. “I spaced out a little, I was trying to think about what we could do…”

“No, you weren’t,” Leon replies and it is an absolute statement, no room for question. He has her figured out, but he is still smiling at her.

“No, I wasn’t,” she finds herself saying, before she can stop it.

“So, what were you thinking about?” he asks with a teasing tone, and she wonders if he is just smiling because he is messing with her. She shouldn’t tell him the truth, she knows that much for certain.

“I forgot,” she lies quickly, and Leon simply laughs.

“You did? Well, maybe this might help jog your memory a little.” As he moves in closer, Gloria finds herself completely frozen in place, too stunned to move, not believing what is happening even as it happens. She does not pull away, so Leon is easily able to press his lips to hers.

She remains frozen as he kisses her, and does not move again until he pulls away, looking a little sheepish as he asks, “Sorry, was I wrong?”

Finally, Gloria returns to her senses and quickly shakes her head. “No, you weren’t! I was just...I was…”

“Surprised?”

“Very,” she mumbles, feeling her face grow red as she stares down at her lap. She may have regained the ability to speak, but that does not mean that she has any idea what’s going on right now. Leon has just kissed her, completely out of the blue, and after years of convincing herself that she would never experience something like that, the man she has been pining for for the better part of her life has just given her her very first kiss.

“Like I said,” Leon says, “you’ve grown up a lot while I was gone. You’ve always been cute, but how is it that you managed to get even cuter?”

“What?” Now she looks up at him, eyes wide, but as soon as he makes eye contact with her and smiles, she looks down again, blushing harder.

“I mean, you were a cute kid, sure, but now...well, you’re cute in a different way. I haven’t been able to take my eyes off of you, Gloria,” he murmurs, and reaches for her, placing a finger under her chin so that he can nudge her, and make her look at him.

“Lee...I-I mean, Leon…”

“Come on, you’ve known me your whole life. You can call me Lee,” he replies. “I was surprised to see you weren’t over your little crush yet. You must like me a lot, huh?”

“Are you just doing this to mess with me?” she asks, though she almost doesn’t want to, for fear of what will happen if the answer is yes.

“We’ve been friends for years. I would never mess with you like that,” Leon says, before pulling her into another kiss. This time, Gloria sees it coming, and rather than freezing up, she returns it, letting him guide her through her lack of experience.

It’s hard to tell how long their next kiss lasts, because it both feels like it goes on for too long and like it is over too soon. Gloria can hardly breathe, trembling as she looks up as Leon, who smiles at her and seems cool as ever. Even in a moment like this, he is completely composed, and that is what truly highlights the differences between the two of them. Leon seems like an idiot most of the time, and gets lost in the most straightforward of situations, but in a place like this, he already knows exactly where he’s going.

“I probably shouldn’t be doing this,” he confesses, “but if you don’t want to stop, then I definitely won’t be able to stop.”

Does she want to stop?

Of course she doesn’t. She’s wanted to be with him for as long as she can remember, and she has  _ wanted _ him for as long as she could understand what those feelings meant. For so long now, she has wanted this while thinking it impossible, and now he is telling her that it isn’t. Everything is moving so quickly that she has no idea how to process it, and no idea if she should really go through with it. Of course she wants to go through with it, but it makes no sense to her that Leon would even want this with her, so she hesitates.

“Gloria? Is this too much for you?” She still hasn’t said anything, and now Leon is concerned. If she doesn’t do something soon, the mood will be completely ruined, and she might never have another chance like this. Gloria has no idea if this is the right thing to do or not, but she doesn’t have the time to debate something like that.

“No,” she says, deciding to think about things when it’s already all said and done. “It’s not too much, you just surprised me, is all.”

“Is that all? Well, you don’t have anything to worry about now. I’ll take good care of you, Gloria.”

And he does. She has no idea what she’s doing, and mildly terrified that she is somehow going to disappoint Leon, but tries to keep on a brave face, not wanting him to see just how nervous she is about it. As he helps her out of her clothes, she searches his face for any disappointment in her appearance, but finds no sign of it, and is soon distracted by him pulling his shirt over his head. No matter what the consequences of tonight may be, it’s hard not to think that she has made the right choice.


	16. Chapter 16

Leon pushes up her skirt, and she squirms a bit, not sure what she should do, or where she should put her hands, or if she should do anything to help him. He said that he had everything under control, so maybe that means that she should just stay like she is, even if she feels awkward, and like she is not doing enough work right now.

With her skirt pushed up, is able to pull at her panties, and again, she squirms, not quite in discomfort, but perhaps close. She has never been this close to anyone before, and the fact that it is Leon, the man that she wants to do this with more than anyone, doesn’t really make that any easier to deal with. In fact, it only makes it that much more nerve wracking, to know that he is taking her clothes off as she sits here, wondering what  _ she _ should do.

She does not regret her decision to go through with this, and does not doubt that he will keep his promise of taking good care of her, but she can’t stop her nerves, especially as he pulls her panties down slowly, feeling as though he takes forever with it. But then Leon reaches back up, putting his hand between her legs, and she jumps, whimpering as she does.

“You’re alright,” he murmurs, reassuring. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you, remember?” Despite her nerves, she can feel her body responding more eagerly to his touch, and she bites her lip, breath catching in her throat. She wants this, so badly that she has had dream after dream about it, and now that he is properly touching her, she can already see that it is nothing like her dreams.

Nothing can actually compare to having someone else’s touch, so different from her own. He strokes with his fingers, and she finds it harder and harder to remember her nerves as she allows herself to give into her lust, and let her desire for Leon take control. She remembers his kiss, and how unbelievable and amazing it felt to be so close to him, and allows that feeling to guide her through this.

When she moans without realizing it, she blushes upon hearing the noise escape her, and Leon chuckles. “It’s good, isn’t it?” he asks, looking at her. All she can do is nod, not trusting her voice anymore.

He pulls her into another kiss, pressing his finger inside of her, and she squeaks, though that is muffled by his lips on hers. Everything that he does just seems that much  _ better _ than anything she has ever done for herself, as if he has some sort of understanding that she doesn’t, and she wants to try and learn from him, though it is hard to focus on that when her head is absolutely spinning.

As he works a second finger inside of her, he deepens the kiss and she can’t stop herself from moaning into it, steadily becoming less self-conscious as she becomes so lost in pleasure that she simply doesn’t care anymore. It’s hard to worry about how she might look to him when he is doing so much to her, and putting her in such a state of bliss. Her dress feels suddenly too heavy and too hot, and she wants nothing more than to strip out of it.

As if sensing this, Leon breaks the kiss and tugs at the bottom of it, wanting to pull it up over her head. She allows him to, and doesn’t even worry as he unclasps her bra, or rests a hand over one of her breasts. Gloria just wants to keep going, missing the feeling of his hand between her legs, and desperate for more of him. Leon gently pushes her down onto her back, then gets off of her so that he can undress himself, and she lays back, squirming in anticipation, her breathing reduced to pants.

It is hard not to let her impatience show, and harder still not to beg him for more, but she holds her tongue, doing her best to not look  _ too _ needy, though she may have already failed that from the beginning. The hardest part, perhaps, is not staring at Leon as he undresses, and she definitely fails that, unable to take her eyes off of him, even when he notices her staring. She blushes when she smirks at her, and once he is completely stripped down, he climbs on top of her, and her breath catches in her throat again.

For a moment, Gloria is not able to catch her breath as Leon begins to push his cock inside of her. She is tense, and struggles to let that tension go, but all the while, he murmurs his reassurances to her, telling her that he’s got her, and that everything is going to be just fine. Though it does hurt, she steadily grows used to it, until the pain begins to fade, giving way to the pleasure. Leon never takes things farther than she can handle, and allows her all the time she needs to adjust to having him inside of her, before he moves at all.

By the time he is completely buried within her, and has begun to rock his hips, she is moaning for him again, so overwhelmed that she has no way to describe what she feels. For her first time, she is too lost in all the new sensations to really register what is happening, and all she can do is lay back and take it, until Leon has brought her to the most intense orgasm that she has ever experienced, putting anything that she has ever done on her own to shame.

Leon pulls out while she is still riding out the waves of her pleasure, before he comes. She has a hard time catching her breath, and is suddenly so tired, realizing what a long and eventful day that she has had. Fortunately, Leon seems rather tired as well, and he is content to just fall asleep with her.

~X~

In the morning, Gloria takes a moment to remember where she is. She has already grown used to not waking up in a bed, so that alone is strange enough, but then, she feels Leon behind her, still holding her, and she remembers the circumstances that brought her here. Did all of that really happen? Of course, the fact that she’s with Leon is more than enough to confirm that it was not just a dream.

It sure feels like a dream, though.

She isn’t sure if she should try and wake Leon up, but she knows that she will not be able to fall back asleep like this, so she is left to reflect on the night before, recalling how it all happened. It happened so quickly, with Leon revealing that he knew her feelings, that he has always known her feelings, and that, lately, he has begun to feel the same way as her. She still hardly believes it, but he has left her little room for doubt.

Her childhood friend and childhood crush, the man that she has always looked up to, likes her, and likes her enough to want to be with her. She remembers their reason for coming here to talk, and wonders if it’s right for her to feel so happy right now, when she knows that Hop is out there somewhere, still torn up over his loss, but she can’t get rid of her happy feelings, try as she might.

But when Leon wakes up, he jumps back, seeming almost surprised to find her in bed with him, before he groans, and Gloria is worried. “Why did I do that?” he mutters to himself, the last thing that she wants to hear from him right now. If he regrets it all, then maybe he doesn’t like her after all.

“Gloria...ah, shit, Gloria, I…” He sits up as he tries to figure out what to say, and she sits up as well. Realizing that she is still naked, she pulls the blanket up around her, not sure if she wants to be so exposed to him right. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Why not?” The question sounds stupid, but it is all that she can think to say.

“You know exactly why not. You should be able trust me not to do that, and I knew better than to flirt with you, but here I am.”

“You knew that I liked you,” she says. “Don’t...don’t you like me?”

“Of course I do. But I shouldn’t have  _ acted _ on that, I should have just...I’m always so stupid!” He shakes his head, not looking at her. “I’m sure you’re not going to want to just pretend this never happened. Well, I guess I deserve whatever happens if you tell.”

“I...I’m not going to tell anyone,” she replies, surprised to realize that he is assuming that she will spread word of their night together as revenge for him rejecting her. “I just...also don’t want to pretend it never happened. Because I was happy about it, and you said that...I’m not going to tell anyone! I just don’t want to cut things off already.”

“Even though I basically took advantage of you?”

“I don’t feel like you did. I knew what I was getting into, and if you do like me, and want to be with me, and didn’t just make that up to get what you wanted, then I don’t think you took advantage of me,” says Gloria, hoping that she is able to get the point across to him.

Leon still looks reluctant, but seems to have calmed down a bit from his initial panic. “I was being honest with you. I do want to be with you, I just always meant to keep that to myself, because of the age difference, and because you’re Hop’s best friend. It could be bad for me, maybe for both of us, if it got out that I’d done what I did.”

“I know that, but I already said I’m not going to tell anyone. If you’re just worried about people finding out, don’t be. I wouldn’t even tell Hop.” Even as she says his name, she feels a stab of guilt, and wonders where he is, and if he is okay right now.

“We would have to meet up without telling anyone where we were going, and we’d have to be careful about going out together. I could never call you my girlfriend in public, and we could never go on a real date,” he says. “It’s not going to be anything like you probably dreamed.”

“But I’ve dreamed of being with you since I was kid,” she replies. “Just last night could have been enough for me.”

“Gloria…” He hesitates for a moment before he says, “You were so shy last night, but this morning, you seem to know exactly how to get what you want. We can see where things go, alright?”

Happiness bubbles up in her again, as she realizes that, at least for now, Leon is hers.

~X~

They are not able to spend much more time together in the hotel. He has a busy schedule, and she really needs to get a move on, if she is going to make it to Stow-on-Side to challenge the next gym. Not only that, but she still needs to see if she can get in contact with Hop somehow, though now she is not sure how she is going to face him. Now that she’s slept with his older brother, rather than trying to be there for him when he was clearly not doing very well, she feels like it might be difficult to talk to him, not that he knows the truth of the matter.

But before she can make it to Stow-on-Side and start thinking about her next move, she runs into some Team Yell grunts rightaway.


	17. Chapter 17

The members of Team Yell are blocking the road, seemingly because of a Silicobra asleep on the ground. They only let certain people pass, in order to avoid waking it up, and Gloria can already tell that she is not going to be let through so easily. While she is trying to think of what to do, someone approaches behind her, and she is surprised to turn around and see Hop. She’d had no idea that he was even still in the area, since she hadn’t heard from him at all.

To think that she would run into him right away! She tries not to let her surprise show too much on her face, or let anything show on her face, especially not the panic she feels, knowing that she only just left the hotel room that she shared with his older brother. Besides, she has more important things to worry about, and should be asking him how he’s feeling, but then she wonders if that might not come across the wrong way right now.

“Oh, hey, Gloria. You’re heading to Stow-on-Side, right?” he asks, speaking before she has the chance to.

“Yeah, I am,” she replies.

“Oi, Team Yell. Don’t suppose you’ll let us through?”

“Nah, you kids are way too loud. Can’t be lettin’ you through. An’ we’re not particularly fond of kids wearin’ the challenger band!” one of the grunts says.

“With all your stompin’ around, Silicobra is sure to wake up!” the other insists.

“Right,” says Hop. “What do you say, Gloria? If we don’t get past them, we won’t be able to continue our gym challenge at Stow-on-Side.”

“Then we’re just going to have to battle our way through,” she says. After all, it’s how they have handled everything up until now. 

“You...yeah, that’s the spirit!” Hop says with a smile, though at first, she thinks she sees a flicker of sadness in his face.

“You two are way too noisy. You don’t wanna wake up Silicobra, now, do you?”

Gloria is prepared to take them both on at once, battling with Hop at her side, but then he says, “Think I’ll leave this to you, Gloria. Keep up the pace.”

He isn’t going to battle with her? The two of them have done well in double battles before, and she knows that he has a lot of strength to contribute. Is he really still that torn up over his loss? She and Leon were supposed to be talking about him, and they were supposed to try and get in contact with him. They shouldn’t have gotten so carried away, and she feels even more guilty now for being so caught up in her own happiness that she decided to let it go for the time being.

Now Hop doesn’t have the confidence to battle at her side anymore, leaving everything to her and simply cheering her on as she defeats the grunts, the first one and then the second one. Though she can handle it just fine on her own, things would have gone much faster if Hop had been at her side, and she would have felt at least a little better about his current state.

“Silicobra might wake up after all that ruckus!” on the grunts whines.

“Then there’s no point in us stickin’ around! Let’s get out of here! We’ll make these bothersome kids holler some other day!” the other replies, and the two hurry off without waiting a second longer.

“Gloria, you and Drizzle were brilliant together!” Hop says, once those two are gone.

“Hop, you never called me or anything. We were supposed to meet up,” she says. If they had met up, she never would have ended up alone with Leon, but she tries not to think about that.

He hangs his head, shame written clearly on his face. “See, Bede really wiped the floor with me the last time we battled. And don’t get me wrong- I can take a loss! Battling means you’ve got to lose sometimes,” he explains. “But he said that I was dragging Lee’s good name through the mud, being so rubbish like I was. And I just can’t get those words out of my head! If I’m weak, then people’ll think Lee’s weak too...but I don’t want that! I can’t let Lee get dragged down! He’s the unbeatable champion!”

“That’s not true!” she protests. “The two of you...you’re family, sure, but…” She can’t think of how to say it, but she knows that Leon would never feel that way, and, even if people did somehow think less of him because of his little brother, he would laugh it off, and continue proving them wrong in his own matches. But saying  _ that _ to Hop might suggest that she does think he’s weak, and that people might look down on Leon because of him.

He picks up on her lack of response, and just shakes his head, too lost in his own thoughts to really consider what she has to say anyway. “I’m gonna take some time figuring this out. See you around, Gloria,” he replies.

“I...yeah, I’ll be seeing you,” she says, knowing that this is the part where she needs to say something really inspiring to snap him out of it, but also knowing that she has nothing at all that she can say. Her euphoria from this morning has worn off completely now, and she hangs her head as Hop walks away, deciding not to follow him.

But as he is walking away, someone else approaches at a rather slow pace, who seems to just be passing through. Opal, a gym leader that she has yet to face, walks up to her and asks, “You’re one of the challengers endorsed by Leon, aren’t you?”

“I am,” Gloria replies.

“My name’s Opal. If you want to know more, have a look at my league card,” she says, before reaching in her purse to hand one to her. “I’ll keep an eye on you, child. I want to see what you can do when you go all out.”

And just like that, she continues on her way, walking past Gloria without concerning herself with a response. It was a quick and strange encounter, but then, Gloria has heard a few times that the aged gym leader is rather eccentric. She has been planning to retire for a long time now, but still continues with her work because she has not found a suitable successor yet.

Gloria decides not to think too much on it, and continues on her way. There is a lot on her mind now, her emotions all mixed up as she thinks about the pair of brothers that have always been important to her. She never should have let Hop be alone when he felt like this, but if she had been with him, she and Leon would still be nothing more than friends. But if they had spent time actually trying to get in touch with Hop, or discuss what they could do to help him, then they might not have ended up sleeping together either.

It seems like, no matter how she thinks about, everything ends up with either her being there for Hop, or her getting to be with Leon. Her happiness, at Hop’s expense. She wonders if that is how it has always been, because she has always dreamed of becoming the champion, the same as him. One of them was going to have to lose, and one of them was going to have to give up on that dream, if one of them were to achieve it.

All this time, she has been defeating him in battle after battle, growing more confident in her ability to take him down as her rival. She has not thought much about what will happen if she does make it to the semi-finals, or what will happen if she actually has to battle Leon, but now she understands that achieving her goal is at the expense of Hop’s happiness. Just the same as her chance encounter with Leon came at the expense of being there for Hop when he probably needed the two of them the most.

She doesn’t know what she is supposed to do now, with all of that in mind, so she just keeps going on her way, making camp when it starts to get late. It seems like the day has gone by too fast, with Gloria spending most of her time walking and lost in her own thoughts, barely focused on the battles she has with trainers along the way. She just wants to get to the next town, hoping that she will be able to clear her head by then, and that she will be able to make sense of how she should be feeling right now.

Until then, she makes camp and she sleeps, sending a goodnight text to Leon before she does.

~X~

First thing in the morning, she checks her phone to see a response from him, apologizing for not contacting her more the day before. He had a lot to do, he explains, but she should let him know when she finishes her gym battle, so that he can call her. She realizes that she has not yet told him that she found Hop, and promises herself that she will, as soon as she is able to call him.

Stow-on-Side is just up ahead, so she should be able to get to the gym and get her next battle underway soon enough. Along the way, she finally catches back up to Hop.

“Gloria...I’m still not too sure what I should do about all that stuff I told you before,” he says, before she can even greet him, “about me being weak and dragging down Lee’s good name and all, yeah? But the only thing I can do is get stronger, right? So I’m gonna try out all kinds of different things against you and see what works!”

It is hard to tell, but it almost seems like he is doing better. His smile seems a little bit less forced, and he isn’t talking about things like it is a completely hopeless situation anymore. Still, she can’t shake the feeling that it would not be that easy for him to come back to himself, and she isn’t sure if she should believe right away that he is feeling better.

“Then let’s do this! I bet an all-out battle with my true rival will help me get my head on straight!” he says, and at least that is something that she knows she can expect from him. Being challenged by Hop helps bring back a sense of normalcy, so she is eager to agree to it, feeling much more alert with him than she did with any of the trainers that she battled along the way.

There is a part of her that wonders if she should hold back during the battle. She wonders if defeating Hop now would only set him back further, but she also is fairly certain that he would be able to tell if she just gave up and threw the match. That would make him feel much worse than a genuine loss, so she has no choice but to give it all she has, even though it results in another loss for Hop, and another victory for her.

But he does not hang his head in shame, an odd, new resolve in his expression now. “I don’t want people to be laughing at Lee all because his little brother is rubbish! It’s not enough! I’ve got to try harder! And harder and harder till no one’s laughing!” he declares. Gloria can’t think of anything to say to him when he is like this. “I’m off, mate! Off to find the kind of Pokemon that I can really draw the strength out of!”

“I’ll...see you later, then,” she calls after him, not sure if he even hears her as he runs off.


	18. Chapter 18

“That child…” Opal says, seeming to have appeared out of nowhere, while Gloria is left in her thoughts after Hop flees the scene. “Gym challengers should battle for the sake of their own Pokemon. Why worry about saving the champion’s name? We all know he’s unbeatable.”

Gloria looks over to her in surprise. How much of their battle did she see? Obviously, she heard what Hop says, and seems to be disappointed in his reasoning, but Gloria wonders if she would disappointed in her as well, if she knew that Hop’s best friend had no idea how to help him, and spent more time worry about his older brother.

“You’re headed to the Stow-on-Side gym next, no? The gym challenge is about having fun,” she says, not seeming to mind that Gloria has nothing to say for herself. Is Opal’s judgment correct? Is Hop in the wrong for thinking the way he does, or is it her fault for not being there to support him?

She sets off for the gym with no idea what to think, but once she is changed into her uniform and has begun the challenge, she has her head in the game again. There is nothing that she can do for Hop while here, and so, she needs to focus on getting the fourth badge, marking the halfway point in her journey.

Midway through the trainers that make sure she is qualified to challenge the gym leader, her Drizzile evolves again, reaching his final stage as an Inteleon, suddenly much taller than his trainer, but still just as loyal as ever. Her actual battle against Bea, she has no trouble with, and when Gloria emerges from the gym, she has half the badges needed to qualify for the Champion Cup.

Now, she has to make her way to Ballonlea, where she will be able to challenge the mysterious Opal, who seems to have taken a personal interest in her and Hop. Either that, or she really does just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Whatever the case, Gloria is ready to get started on her journey right away, so that she can call Leon on the road, when a familiar Yamper rushes up to her.

“Looks like my Yamper really likes you, huh?” asks Sonia, following behind her Pokemon. “Actually, we’ve run into each other at a good time. You know the mural here in Stow-on-Side? It’s said to tell the story of the hero of Galar as well. Though what’s there today is actually a replica of the ancient art that used to be here. You tend to have surprisingly sharp insight, so I was wondering what you might think when you see the ruins.”

Just like that, Sonia is already on her topic, and Gloria is relieved that she is that distracted by her own work. This is the first time that they have run into each other since she and Leon hooked up, and just like with Hop, it is strange to face someone who knows both of them, but does not know the truth. At the very least, she feels less jealous and intimidated in Sonia’s presence, knowing now that Leon is interested in her and not his own childhood friend.

“Alright,” says Gloria, deciding to humor her. “I was just finishing up here, so we can go check it out!”

At that moment, there is a loud rumble, and both look off in the direction that it has come from, surprised. “Wha…? What in the world was that?” asks Sonia. “Sounds like it came from the directions of the ruins, too. Let’s have a look! Come along, Yamper!”

Together, the two of them run up toward the direction of the noise, until they reach the area that Sonia had wanted to show Gloria, a mural painted on the face of the rocky ruins. In front of it, stands Bede with a Copperajah, his intentions quickly made clear.

“Destroy it! Destroy it all! We’re going to find those wishing stars! We’ve got to bring the chairman more wishing starts if we want to please him! If you’re truly the chairman’s Pokemon, then you should feel grateful for this chance to help him find wishing stars!” he says, urging the large Pokemon on as it resumes smashing at the wall, chipping away at the rocks. Only then does he seem to notice that he has an audience, but when he turns around, he ignores Sonia entirely.

“Oh my. You again. So, you think you can start collecting wishing stars now and get in the chairman’s favor? That’s the way of things, isn’t it?” he asks. “I see. So you do have some cunning in you. But I won’t have it! I won’t allow anyone to stand in my way!”

He has no interest in what Gloria has to say for herself; he only wants a battle, and she knows that he will not back down until he gets one. The Copperajah remains on standby, still until he is done with their battle and can give it orders again. With Sonia watching in absolute horror, Gloria knows that she can’t afford to lose, and does what she can to pull off a quick victory, wanting to know just what on earth Bede thinks that he is doing. And, at the same time, even though she knows that it will never count, it feels like vengeance for Hop.

“But why…? How can this be? How could someone like you get in my way? I was the one chosen by the chairman...I was the one who was to defeat the champion...I’m one of the elite- someone who can shoulder the future of the Galar region!” he protests, and she sees now just how hard he can take a loss.

“Challenger Bede!” a voice calls out, catching the attention of the three. She, Bede, and Sonia turn to see a group approaching them, with Chairman Rose leading them, Oleana and league employees following behind him.

“I wondered what you were up to when you asked to borrow Chairman Rose’s Copperajah. I can’t believe you’d try to use the chairman’s Pokemon to destroy a historical site!” Oleana scolds him.

Bede scoffs. “Who cares for some ancient ruin when the next thousand years are at stake?! Did you stand in the path of a Pokemon’s Simple Beam or something? How do you expect to support the chairman with that sort of thinking?”

Shaking his head, the chairman steps forward. “Young Bede...It paints me to have to say this, but I am truly disappointed. It’s true that I am the one who found you, back when you were all alone. I saw talent in you. You reminded me a bit of myself, back when I was young. That’s why I sent you to a trainer’s school, to give you a chance at success. But trying to destroy the mural- part of Galar’s history! You show no love toward Galar!”

It is clear from the shocked look on Bede’s face that this is not what he was expecting to hear. What comes next, however, completely floors him. “You are clearly not a worthy challenger for the gym challenge. We will decide what to do with you later. For now, you will return to Hammerlocke.”

“You...you must be joking right?” he asks, but receives no answer. Frantically, he continues. “ou’re disqualifying me from the gym challenge? But you’re the one who endorsed me! There are a hundred different ways we could sort this out. Why are you choosing the worst possible option?”

But Rose does not say anything at all to him, and instead, one of his employees steps forward to deal with things. “Challenger Bede. I will be taking those wishing stars that you have gathered.”

Perhaps sensing that there is nothing more that he can do, he does not put up much of a fight, and is soon escorted away, without saying another word.

“Ah, Sonia! And Gloria, too,” Rose says, as if noticing them there for the first time. “Terrible shame, all this. An absolute disaster. I never wish to see challengers lose for this sort of reason. Yet we do what we must to keep things fair and sportsmanlike.”

After saying his piece, he sees no point in staying either, and he and Oleana follow in the direction that Bede was taken, without bothering to wait for a response from either of them. Gloria turns to Sonia, who looks just as bewildered as she feels.

“You know, during one of Bede’s matches, I heard the announcer say that he has no family. Apparently it was Rose who took Bede under his wing, and so Bede was battling for the chairman’s sake,” says Sonia a little sadly. “What an awful turn of events...I hope the mural survived all that.”

As if happening because she said, the mural begins to crumble, finally succumbing to the damage that Bede inflicted. Gloria and Sonia stare on in surprise, as the crumbling wall soon reveals a cave, with ruins left inside, statues of the two heroes, and the two mysterious Pokemon that must have aided them on the Darkest Day.

Sonia brightens a bit when she realizes what this is. “Not a brilliant turn of events, but the ruins were brought into the light for us to see. What does this tell us about Galar’s legends?”

“Looks like there really were two Pokemon involved,” Gloria replies. “The sword and the shield…”

“Right! More than any hero, there’s those things who appear to be Pokemon that stand out! Not just that, but those Pokemon appear to be holding a sword and shield as if they were using them!”

“It’s like the tapestries!”

“Oh, good observation! There really were two heroes. But if that’s the case, then why only the one statue at the Budew Drop Inn? More than any statue of a hero or old tapestry, these ruins made in truly ancient times must show us the real truth. Which means…” She trails off, leaving it open for Gloria to contribute again.

“The sword and shield were always Pokemon?”

“Yup! I was thinking the same thing! Seems like at some point in history, the sword and shield were combined with the two actual Pokemon and treated as the same thing. But then what?” asks Sonia. “They just faded from history? Two young heroes...the sword and shield were actually Pokemon...but why would the truth of these ruins be hidden when their stories were depicted in artwork?”

She seems so lost in thought now that Gloria does not feel like she should keep weighing in, especially when she barely knows what is going on to begin with. Finally, Sonia speaks up again. “With your help, I really feel like we made a big discovery here. Thanks! Now, sorry for holding you up. Keep giving it your best in the gym challenge, okay?”

“Right,” Gloria says, still not sure how, exactly, she managed to help, but glad that she could. It’s a strange feeling, not seeing Sonia as a rival, and actually feeling happy to be able to help in some way. “I guess I should get going, then.”

They say their goodbyes, and she starts off on the road to Ballonlea, waiting for a bit before she pulls out her phone to call Leon. She isn’t sure if he will be free to answer or not, but after a little while, he does. “Gloria! So, you’re halfway through the gym challenge now, aren’t you?”

Her heart skips a beat, hearing his voice for the first time since she left the hotel the day before. “That’s right!”

“I’m so proud of you! I guess you’re already on the road, huh? Be careful, trying to find Ballonlea is an absolute nightmare,” he warns her.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” she replies, before pausing. “Listen, I saw Hop…” She tries to tell him about Hop’s behavior, but isn’t sure how to describe the changes in his demeanor. Leon listens patiently to her before he replies.

“Do you think I should have a talk with him? It seems like he’s blaming all of this on himself, because he doesn’t want me to be disappointed with him,” he says. “I’m just not sure if talking to him would make things better or worse, since he hasn’t talked to me about any of this. I don’t want him to find out that you’re telling me all of this, for sure.”

“Right,” she agrees. “I just don’t know what to do about anything. I’ve never seen him like this before.”

“If only that Bede hadn’t said anything. I’ve never been sure how to feel about that kid…”

“Well, he might not be much of a problem for long,” she says, before telling him what she just witnessed. The revealed ruins had helped distract her from the shock of Bede getting expelled from the gym challenge at first, but now, as she tells the story to Leon, she feels oddly numb. While it’s true that she has never much liked Bede, it must be awful for him right now, yet at the same time, it seems that he brought it all on himself.

Leon agrees, saying, “He should have known better than to do something like that, even for the chairman, but...ah, did he really expect to get praise for it? I can’t imagine what he must feel like right now.”

Even through all of this, she feels a strange sense of satisfaction, being able to discuss things like this with Leon. The two of them are closer now than they have ever been, and though she feels guilty for being so happy at a time like this, she can’t help it, especially not when he turns the conversation back to her, praising her for a job well done today.


	19. Chapter 19

Gloria can understand the warnings about the trip to Ballonlea. It is a difficult trek where she nearly gets turned around and lost several times, but she doesn’t allow herself to give up or get frustrated. She wants to make sure that she gets to town before nighttime, so that she can find a place to stay and not have to camp out, but it is difficult to tell when night actually comes, because of how dark it already is.

Eventually, she does make it to town, and finds a place to stay for the night that gives a discount to gym challengers. Once she is settled in, she texts Leon to let him know that she made it there safe, and he replies, surprised that she did it so quickly, and jealous of how easily she found her way there.

_ I would have been lost a whole week if Sonia hadn’t dragged me out eventually _ , is how he puts it. Even now, it seems hard to believe that they could be so close and have nothing between them, but she knows better than to let her thoughts wander too much in that direction, and get herself worked up over jealousy that has no basis.

It still seems hard to believe that Leon is even hers, but he is, and that means that she no longer has to worry about Sonia at all. The two of them are friends now, the same as Sonia and Leon have always been, and that’s all there is to it.

Before she falls asleep, she finds herself wondering about Hop again. She hopes that wherever he is right now, that he might have started to cheer up, but at the same time, she knows that she has little right to sit around hoping for him to feel better while having done very little to actually help him. The next time she sees him, she needs to actually talk to him, though it will be difficult to have a serious discussion with him while sitting on the secret that she is in a relationship with his older brother.

~X~

Bright and early the next morning- or, as bright as it can get in this perpetually dark town- she heads for the gym, where she sees Marnie upon entering. It has been a long time since they last ran into each other, but Marnie waves her over anyway.

“Oh, challenger Gloria!” she says. “I heard you got four gym badges already. I’m gonna have to watch out for you, huh? Look, even Morpeko is wary of you.” She gestures to the Pokemon at her side, but her Morpeko just smiles, not looking wary in the slightest.

“Wait, Morpeko, don’t tell me you actually like Gloria? Ugh! She’s an opposin’ gym challenger! Guess there’s nothin’ to it,” she says with a sigh. Perhaps she had been hoping to put up some tough front to suit her punk aesthetic, but her Pokemon put an end to that with the playful behavior. Instead, she reaches in her jacket pocket to pull something out. “Look, just take one of my league cards, okay? What’s with that look, huh? This just means I’ll think of you as my rival from now on, okay?”

Though Gloria did not think she was giving her any sort of look, she just nods and says, “Same here! Oh, hold on, I can give you one of my cards too.”

The two of them exchange cards and Marnie says, “There aren’t too many gym challengers left, y’know. So we’re meetin’ in the finals. You got that?”

“Got it! I’ll see you there!” she promises.

“Only if you win this next battle. You’d better get in there and get started,” says Marnie, and with that, she leaves, and Gloria goes to get changed for her battle against Opal.

The challenge beforehand is a rather strange one, held like an audition, where Opal watches her up on stage, judging her as she battles the various trainers that challenge her. In the midst of this, she gives her a quiz with questions that range from very relevant to seemingly random, and all of  _ this _ is because she claims that she considers every gym challenger as a potential successor. She wants to retire soon, but will not do so until she has the perfect gym leader to leave the Fairy gym with.

Overall, she is just as eccentric a woman as Gloria originally thought, but she makes it through the initial challenge without much issue, and can then move onto the battle itself. She goes out to meet Opal in the open stadium, and it finally starts to feel like a real gym battle again. The excitement in the air is always so contagious, and she tries to walk with as much confidence as she can muster. Just as Marnie said, she has made it very far, and she knows that means that she has a lot to be proud of. She will not be content until she reaches the top, however.

This step on the path to the championship goes rather smoothly, and by the end, she secures another victory and another gym badge. Opal informs her that she is not quite fit to be her successor, but that she sees great things in her future nonetheless. Gloria does not take that personally, because she had no interest in becoming a Fairy type gym leader anyway.

Now that she has five badges, she is more than halfway to qualifying for the semi-finals, and with plenty of time to earn the last three. Even so, she is not going to waste any time with this, and calls a taxi when she leaves the gym, so that she can head back to Hammerlocke. The next stop is in the opposite direction that she came from, so she can at least cut some travel time out by flying, and not have to worry about finding her way back out of this tricky area.

Before she can depart, Opal emerges from the gym, stopping her. “Hold on now. I’ve got a few errands to run in Hammerlocke. Care to join me for the journey? They say two’s company, after all.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s fine!” Gloria agrees, letting Opal join her on the taxi. There is not much conversation as they make their way to Hammerlocke, as Gloria has begun texting Leon again, telling him about her recent victory, and that she will be back in Hammerlocke soon. He replies that he is still in town, and that if she has free time, he definitely will too.

Leon makes a date with her, and as Gloria grins at her phone, she hears Opal chuckle and say, “Well, looks like someone got some good news.” But she does not press her for information when Gloria simply blushes and looks back down at her phone.

It doesn’t take them too terribly long to reach the city, certainly not as long as it would have taken Gloria on foot. Once they touch down, they both set off for the center of the city, Opal commenting as she does. “Hammerlocke- always such a dusty town. Though I suppose some Pokemon prefer it that way.”

Gloria is surprised when she sees Bede, simply wandering aimlessly. She can tell by the look on his face that things did not work out in his favor, and that he was not able to convince the chairman to change his mind. Though she would like to avoid him somehow, he notices her before she has the chance.

“Come to gawk at me now that I’ve had my challenger band taken away and my challenger status revoked?” he asks, but even his sneer seems half-hearted. “Can you really afford to waste time like this? Well, I suppose so. You no longer have to worry about catching up with me, after all. I’ll have you know, though, that I haven’t given up! I must become the champion in order to help out the chairman! I will go and ask him to let me rejoin the gym challenge!”

Just like always, he doesn’t give anyone else a chance to get a word in edgewise, but even if Gloria were able to think of something to say after his monologue was done, she still would not have a chance. Her traveling companion, suddenly moving a lot faster than Gloria has ever seen, hurries up to Bede, an excited glint in her eyes.

Gloria is forgotten immediately, as Opal sets her sights on him. “So sincere and straightforward and yet so twisted and misguided…” she murmurs. “I like it! That’s the kind of thing that gives people some depth! Time for gym mission, child!”

“Huh? Wha-?!”

As she looks him over, she mutters to herself, not seeming to care about personal space at this point. It is hard for Gloria to hear what she is saying, but she is pretty sure that there is something about pink in there.

“M-Ms. Opal? What in the world has gotten into you?!” Bede stammers.

“You were used by Oleana- am I right? You worked hard to gather wishing stars for her only to have her throw you away like rubbish once she was done with you,” she says. “Come with me, child. I might be able to help you out. Of course, it all depends on how much hard work you’re willing to put in, too.”

“Are you...are you testing me?” he asks, considering it for a moment. “Very well, I accept! In fact, I plan on making sure you see my full talents and tell me everything you know about the wishing stars!”

And just like that, the two of them head off, without another word to Gloria, who is left to wonder what, exactly has transpired. If there were anyone in the world she would have guessed would be able to impress Opal enough to be considered as her successor, Bede would not be anywhere near the top of that list. But it might be enough to take his mind off of whatever is going on between him and the chairman, and it has little to do with her.

Right now, she has a date to make with Leon.


	20. Chapter 20

Meeting up in hotel rooms serves as their best option right now, but Gloria finds that she doesn’t really mind the location, just as long as she gets to spend time with Leon. It still doesn’t feel real to her, even when he opens the door and lets her in, asking if the journey went smoothly.

“Yeah, I just flew straight here,” she replies. “I’m glad you were still in town...and that you invited me to come see you again.”

“Of course I’d invite my girlfriend to come see me,” he replies, not seeming to notice how much it flusters her to hear him say that so bluntly, or perhaps doing it on purpose, just  _ because _ it flusters her. “I’m just proud to see how far you’ve already come, just since the last time I saw you.”

“Well, I’ve kept busy,” she mumbles, not sure what else she should say. She has already told him on the phone about her battles and her badges, and she feels kind of childish going on about them for too long anyway. When they were kids, she had no shortage of things she wanted to say to Leon, but things are a lot different now, and they are both different people.

But then she remembers- once again, feeling terrible for treating it like an afterthought- what brought them together in the first place. “Have you heard from Hop at all? I mean, since the last time I saw you.”

“I haven’t heard anything, but he’s been pretty quiet since starting the gym challenge,” Leon replies. “I guess cos he’s taking it so seriously, and wants to meet me at the finals, but he was already more quiet than usual. When I saw him the other day, it was the first time we had talked in a while, and then he surprised me by getting all apologetic.”

“I can’t really get a good read on him, so I was hoping he might have called you or something, now that he’s feeling better,” she says with a sigh. “It makes me worry that he isn’t actually feeling better, but I know if I asked he would say that he’s just focused on figuring out a new strategy.”

“He really might be doing just fine, and just taking things really seriously right now.”

“I know, but...I just don’t know about that, I mean, I haven’t seen him like this our whole lives.”

“Maybe you just need to give him a little more time before he bounces back, and then he’ll be right back to where he was?”

Gloria hangs her head. “I’m not sure that that will work. He’s been doing a good job not taking losses hard, but like I said, things were really different after what Bede said to him, and maybe it was bothering him before that, and he was just doing a good job of hiding it. And now that Bede has been disqualified, well…maybe that is just going to make things worse.”

“How so?” asks Leon.

“Well, he isn’t ever going to get any closure on that. He might think things would be different if Bede were still a contender. Even if he makes it all the way to the top and even beats me, he might think that he would have never come that far if Bede were still in the running. I don’t know…”

“Even beats you, huh?” he asks, giving her a smirk. “Sounds like you’re feeling pretty confident about all of this.”

Blushing, she says, “I’ve been dreaming of this just as long as he has, you know.”

“You know, things aren’t going to be easier for you just because you’re dating the champion,” he teases, which only causes her blush to deepen.

“Of course not! But don’t think that means I’m going to go easy on you either, just because I like you!” she protests, and Leon leans forward to silence her protests with a kiss. Just like that, she lets herself get lost in the moment, forgetting the topic at hand all too easily, as Leon pulls her closer to him.

This is what she came here for, wasn’t it? In the back of her mind, she knows that this is what happened before, and that they should keep focused on his brother, even if talking about it has not offered a solution so far. Even so, her guilt fades away too easily, as Leon’s hands drift down her back, and she starts to think about just what happened between them the last time, and how much she wants to do that again.

Once her lust has begun to overtake her, it is impossible to think about anything else, and when she moans into the kiss, Leon chuckles, seeing right through her right away. Pulling back, he gives her another smirk as he says, “Already ready for that, huh?”

“I-I was just…”

“It’s fine, I’ve been missing you too, baby.” In a flash, he has her stripped down again, leaving her no time to be self-conscious, and she can’t even bring herself to be shy as she watches him undressed, certain that there must be a greedy glint in her eyes. She just can’t help herself right now- even though she has only been with him for a short while, and they have only really  _ been with _ each other once, she already feels like it is torture to go without for even a couple days.

But in just a few moments, he has her overwhelmed with arousal, so much so that she forgets all of that, forgetting everything but this moment, as he lays her down and kisses down her neck, fingering her and making her moan for him. She has spent the past few days craving his touch, but even after being with him for the first time, her fantasies still can’t measure up to what it is like to experience it for real.

“You sure are eager,” he murmurs, his lips against her neck. “I’ll take good care of you tonight, don’t worry about a thing.”

Things go quite a bit smoother than their first time, with Gloria much more able to relax as Leon pushes into her, quickly falling into a comfortable rhythm, leaving her begging for more as he rocks his hips into her. She is easily able to forget the rest of the world like this, with all of her concerns melting away, and the only on her mind the man on top of her.

~X~

While they are laying together, after they have caught their breath, she remembers their conversation before, and lets her mind wander. She has three more badges to obtain before she qualifies for the semi-finals, and though Bede is out of the running, she still has solid rivals in both Hop and Marnie, and beyond that, there is the chance of a final battle against Leon, the man that no one has managed to defeat in a decade. The man that she has pined for since childhood, the one that inspired her to chase this dream, if only to make her notice him.

Now that he has revealed his feelings for her, she wonders if that makes things more complicated. She has no idea how anything came to this, and can’t stop herself before she asks, “Why are you even with me?”

“Why are you asking me that?” he asks. “I told you before...is that what’s got you so worried?”

“Did I seem worried?” She had not realized he could tell anything was bothering her. “It’s a lot of different things, I’m just thinking about...well, about how complicated everything has gotten.”

“I know what you mean,” he says with a sigh. “I mean, maybe I’m not thinking about the same stuff as you, but...if you were to ask me how I ended up  _ here _ , I wouldn’t have a clue what to say, and if you asked me what I was planning on doing next, I’d have even less of a clue. I’ve actually never done this before.”

“Never done...what?”

“Been in a relationship,” he confesses, much to her surprise. “I’ve had, you know, hook-ups, and stuff like that, but never anything serious before. So, try not to doubt me too much, okay? I’m still new to this part of things too.”

Somehow, this is enough to comfort her, at least for the time being. There are still other things on her mind, and she still does not understand how someone like Leon could possibly like her, but for right now, just knowing that she is the only person he has ever been with like this is enough for her.


	21. Chapter 21

Early the next morning, Gloria leaves the hotel first, with Leon planning to hang behind for just a little bit longer, so that they are not seen leaving together. As she walks into the streets of Hammerlocke, she is surprised to see Sonia out this early, and is immediately filled with guilt, knowing where she just was, and knowing that Sonia has no idea.

Of course, Sonia does not notice anything amiss and is eager to greet Gloria and begin speaking with her, considering her quite the valuable confidante when it comes to her research. “Heya! The badge collecting going well?” she asks.

“I’m up to five now,” Gloria replies, and Sonia beams.

“That’s great! I’ve been doing some research on the ruins in Stow-on-Side...the sword and shield...what kind of Pokemon were they? And where are they now? I still have so many questions, I was thinking about taking another look at the tapestries in-” Her rambling is interrupted by a loud rumble in the distance, the ground shaking a bit, with the two of them both startled.

“Are you kidding me?! What was that?! Hammerlocke Stadium shook,” she says. “That’s where Chairman Rose’s power plant is.” As she contemplates this, there is a sound from the object in her hand, and she holds it up to look at it. “Huh? A Power Spot?! I’m getting readings from the power spot detector...does that mean Dynamaxing is possible here?”

“Hey, Sonia! And Gloria, too!” Leon calls, running up to the two of them, and managing to look like seeing Gloria is as much of a surprise as seeing Sonia. He was supposed to wait a little bit longer before he came out, but he must have been worried when the ground shook. “You felt that shaking, right? Seems Chairman Rose is testing something again.”

He delivers the last sentence as if he is used to that sort of thing, but Sonia does not take it nearly as casually. “This is bad! Pokemon might start Dynamaxin right in the middle of Hammerlocke!” she cries, which at least makes Leon see that this is something serious.

“Is that so?” he asks. “I can make sure the chairman knows.”

“You’ll just get lost, Leon! I’m going too!” Sonia replies. Gloria had thought about offering to go with him, certain that it would not look strange under these circumstances. They’re friends, after all, but it seems that Sonia is already one step ahead of her.

It is hard to be irritated when she turns back to speak to Gloria before she leaves, though. “I’m really looking forward to seeing you compete in the finals. So you should leave the investigation on the quaking to the adults. Head to Circhester and get that gym badge!”

At least, it is hard to be frustrated when Sonia tells her how much she is looking forward to seeing her make it to the finals, and the simple implication that she thinks Gloria will be the one to make it. But the way she refers to her and Leon as “the adults” is another matter entirely, and Gloria can’t help the bad taste in her mouth as she watches the two of them run off together.

She has to take a moment to try and calm her jealousy, reminding herself for what feels like the hundredth time that, just because the two of them are good friends, that does not mean that there is anything going on between Sonia and Leon. That was true even before her first night with Leon, but now, she has the added confidence of knowing that there  _ is _ something going on with her, and that he cares about her just as much as she cares about him.

For now, there is nothing else she can do, because tagging along after that would definitely look weird, and it would be harder for her and Leon to hide what is going on between them if the three of them were to all go off together. She should just do what Sonia says and head to Circhester, so that she can get her sixth badge, and brag about it to Leon later.

So she sets off, heading the opposite direction from where she arrived the day before, and just as she is passing the station, Hop emerges from it, waving her over. She is glad to see that he looks to be in good spirits as she runs up to him.

“Oh! Gloria! First that forest, then that mad quiz...I’ve been lost in every sense of the word!” he complains, hanging his head, but he brightens back up right away. “But it looks like I’ve finally caught up to you again. Come with me to route 7, I could use a bit of competition to motivate me!”

“You’re not even going to give me a chance to say hello?” she teases him, as she follows him out of the city. “You’re always in such a hurry.”

“You’re still going to act surprised?” he retorts. “You’ve known me for how long, now? You know exactly how I am, and you know that isn’t going to change.”

She wishes that she could agree that he never changes, but she knows that is not the case. The way he has been since his battle with Bede is proof enough of that, showing that he is changing, and probably not for the better. For the moment, he seems to be doing just fine, but if they battle and she wins, will he hang his head again, and wonder why he isn’t strong enough yet? Or, even worse, will he hide his disappointment until he is alone, and mope about it in private, where no one stands any chance of trying to get through to him?

But no matter how she worries, she knows that she can’t make things better by denying him a battle, because then, he would know that she was doing it out of pity, and he would only feel worse about himself. Just the same, she has to battle at full strength, and accept victory if it comes to her.

“Alright, Gloria! You and I both know I’ve got to keep on trying different strategies if I’m going to get strong enough to catch up to Lee...No! Not just catch up!” He shakes his head. “If I want to surpass him! So I think you know what’s coming, mate...let me try out my latest in a battle against you!”

His team is different, with the most notable change being that the Dubwool that has been by his side since his childhood, the Wooloo he has always had, is absent. How can she help but feel even more concerned when she notices that? And, in the end, a new team is not enough for him to pull off a victory against her, though she does struggle a bit to find her footing against the Pokemon that she is not used to dealing with. Still, she does manage to win, and Hop is silent for a moment.

“Before we even started out on this journey...I remember watching Lee on the telly. He was like a bright star, so strong I could hardly bear to look right at him,” he says at last. “But now, I can tell just how strong he really is...and what he’s got that I haven’t. But I’m getting stronger too. Maybe not as fast as you, but fine. Whatever! Thanks for letting me battle with you again.”

“Hop…” she starts, not sure what she is going to say, but certain that she can’t keep silent, not when he’s talking like this.

But Hop shakes his head, not letting her say anything else. “I think I know what it is I really want...I want to battle Lee- I want to take on my bro. But not just that, I want to beat him! I want to be the one who beats the unbeatable champion! And I’m going to! My mind’s made up! You and me are going to have another battle once I get my gym badge in Circhester!”

“Alright,” she says with a nod, because there is nothing else that she can do. She has no idea how to get through to him anymore, and no idea if she has the right to. This is not between her and Hop, not really. Though he may be hurt that she is moving further ahead than he is, that she has more of a knack for battling than he expected, it has never been about their rivalry.

This is between he and Leon, something that Gloria has never really been in between. Not as Hop’s best friend, and not even now, as Leon’s girlfriend, does she have anything to do with what Hop is going through right now. Even Bede’s cruel words only resonated with him because they confirmed a fear that he has always felt in his heart, one that Bede himself has little to do with.

Gloria now has to face the fact that there is nothing she can do for Hop. There is likely not anything Leon can do for him either, even with him being at the source of the problem. And even with all of that in mind, she still can’t help but feel guilty about how close they have gotten behind Hop’s back, and how they have continued to get carried away with their feelings for each other, when he is the one hurting.

Gloria feels suddenly old, as if she has aged quite a bit on this journey, as if it has been much longer since she first left her hometown. She does not necessarily feel like that is a good thing.


	22. Chapter 22

Gloria makes the trip to Circhester, having to bundle up a bit the closer she gets, the temperature dropping the closer she is to the city. The next battle should be a breeze for her and Inteleon, going up against the rock type gym leader Gordie, so she hopes that that is the case. She is getting so close to qualifying for the semi-finals, and she hopes to be able to get the remaining three badges as quickly as possible, so that she does not have to worry about that anymore.

Fortunately, she is making good time, and if she continues at her current pace, then she will make it with plenty of time to prepare herself and make the final journey to Wyndon. As for what awaits her in those battles, she still is not sure, and is just going to have to take that part as it comes. Until then, she will just keep doing what she is already doing, and hoping for the best.

When she reaches the gym, Hop is exiting just as she walks up, head hung low and disappointment written all over his face. It is clear even before he speaks what has happened to him.

“Argh! I lost! It all went to pot!” he exclaims, when he sees Gloria there. “There must’ve been something wrong with my strategy, but I did just what I’ve seen Lee do in battles!”

“Are you off to train up some more?” she asks tentatively. Some people give up after their first gym loss, rather than trying over and over again to defeat the gym leader, having seen others who fall into that trap and get stuck, putting an end to their journey before they have even realized it. She hopes that Hop is not going to fall into that boat so easily.

“Of course I am! I’ll be back to challenge in no time at all, with a new strategy. But, here, I got an extra one of these for you. Hopefully if you have a chance to prepare, you’ll fare a lot better than I did,” he says, as he pulls out Gordie’s league card to give to her. She does not tell him that she already has a good feeling about this battle, not wanting to make his loss feel any worse.

“And me…I’ve gotta figure out what to put on my team once and for all, and no more of this doubting!” he declares, before saying his goodbyes so that he can go train, and so that Gloria can get this gym challenge underway.

Once she is registered and changed into her uniform, she has the challenge explained to her, realizing that this one is a bit more difficult than the others that she has faced along the way. She will have to find her way through a sandstorm with the chance of falling into traps on the ground, with rods in her hands that will help her figure out if she is close to a trap. Along the way, there will be gym trainers challenging her to battles, but that part does not sound nearly as hard as trying to simply find her way through the sandstorm.

Being nearly blinded by it is certainly not a fun time, and even when she can tell that she is close to a trap, that is sometimes not enough warning to keep from falling into it, hitting the ground at the bottom of the hole with a thud, and groaning, as she has to stand and dust herself off. The only benefit is that being in the hole grants her some reprieve from the storm, so she has a chance to gather her bearings before dragging herself back out of it to resume her search.

It grows more and more frustrating as she makes it through one room just to find another just the same. Each room is more challenging than the last, with a battle waiting for her before she can make it all the way through. She is sore from falling into holes by the time she has reached the final room, taking careful and precarious steps throughout, barely able to see a thing anymore, but she is determined to make it through without too many more delays.

Of course, being more cautious with where she walks slows her down about as much as falling into and climbing out of holes, but she reaches the end at last, dusting herself off one more time and making sure that her team is in good condition for the real battle that is to follow. From this point on, it will be straightforward and simple, just between her and Gordie, and she knows that she is going into this battle with the type advantage.

Though she does not know as much about Gordie as some of the other gym leaders, because he only recently took over the gym that his mother used to live, she looks forward to battling him. The two of them take their places, calling out their Pokemon so that they can get this started.

As she had predicted, her type advantage helps make this battle move forward rather quickly and easily. After working as hard as she has to get here, it is nice to have a more refreshing battle, but she still stays on guard, trying not to become too relaxed and let him get the jump on her. Gloria keeps up the pressure until the very end, when she Dynamaxes Inteleon to take down his Gigantamax Coalossal, the dual-typing standing absolutely no chance against a blast of water from Inteleon.

Once his final Pokemon has fainted, she can shake Gordie’s hand and accept her badge from him. She changes and gets ready to leave, and on her way out of the gym, she can hear people murmuring, talking about her specifically, even hearing someone say that they might start to cheer for her over any of the other competitors and gym leaders. It is a strange feeling, to realize that she is starting to amass some fans along the way.

When she exits the stadium, Sonia is waiting for her, saying, “That battle was brilliant! Gordie can be tough, but you had no trouble.”

“Thanks!” Gloria replies. “Inteleon helped me out a lot, truth be told.”

“Well, you were both brilliant then. Say, Circhester has some really great restaurants. I got some things I want to talk to you about, so let’s head to a restaurant to celebrate your win!” says Sonia, and Gloria agrees, following behind her as she leads the way.

Along the way, she mentions running into Hop, saying that he should be waiting for them there.

“Got that gym badge, Gloria? Nice one!” he says, as soon as they arrive. He does not seem to be taking his own loss too hard, nor is he showing any outward envy at Gloria’s recent success, which she hopes that she can take as a good sign. “Sonia said she wanted to bring you out here so she could talk your ear off about the old legend a little more.”

“I’ve been trying to find out more about the Darkest Day and the sword and shield Pokemon but still no luck...wait!” she cries, suddenly noticing something. She rushes toward the wall of the restaurant, where there appears to be some kind of old print of some sort, an awfully odd place to keep something like that. “Hold on! No way! What’s this?!”

“A new chapter in the old Galar legends?” asks Gloria, as she and Hop try to keep up with her.

“The heroes look sad...and where are the sword and shield? What was the meaning of this picture?” she asks, and Gloria studies it, trying to come up with an answer.

“Maybe it was an end to the legend,” she suggests.

“Hm...perhaps when their duty was completed, they went into some kind of sleep? Based on those statues we saw back in Stow-on-Side, the sword and the shield were actually two Pokemon, right?”

“You remember the Pokemon we met that day?” Hop asks Gloria. “Do you think...it could’ve been one of them? Either the sword or the shield Pokemon?”

“You…met them?” Sonia looks perplexed.

“Come on! You know what I’m talking about, right Gloria?”

“You’re talking about the ones in the Slumbering Weald, right?”

“Exactly! The mad Pokemon we ran into in the fog! Don’t you think that could’ve been it?”

“Oh, that’s right! You lot have been in the Slumbering Weald,” says Sonia. “I only started this journey because my gran told me to, but this is turning out to be too much fun! You’ve got to tell me more. How about we discuss this over a meal? Go on, what do you want to eat? Let’s get our orders in!”

So the three of them sit down to eat, while Hop and Gloria tell her everything that happened to them that day, with enough detail as possible. It is nice, to have something to take their minds off of other things, and Hop seems to have brightened up quite a bit. Of course, things do feel a little weird for Gloria, being the only one present that knows what is going on between her and Leon, especially when Hop gets to the part of the story where he came to rescue them, but neither of them notice how awkward she is feeling.

Sonia takes notes on what they say in between bites, and once their dinner is done, she seems to think that she has gotten quite a bit of useful information. Nodding, she says, “All right, the next thing to do now that we’re done eating is to have a look around Circhester! Let’s inspect the Hero’s Bath!”

“She sure is full of energy, huh, Gloria?” says Hop.

“Oh, like you’re one to talk,” Sonia retorts, and the three laugh together as they get ready to go to their next destination.

**Author's Note:**

> If you're interested in my writing updates, please follow my fanfiction twitter @WattStalf  
> 


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